Tag: casserole

Sausage and celery casserole

At the moment, our local shopping has been impacted by the cyberattack on the Co-op. It has greatly altered the availability of all sorts of things. I have been avoiding going to the shops and using up what I have. This time, from the freezer, I had a pound of sausages, some ham stock, and the only vegetable I had was half a head of celery. I also have a lot of garlic and lots of tins of this and that. 

INGREDIENTS:

  • Olive oil
  • 1 pack of sausages (around 400 to 450g)
  • 1/2 head of celery
  • A good pinch of dried peperoncini or other chilli flakes
  • 6 cloves of garlic, chopped
  • Half a glass of white wine
  • Around 200ml ham stock (or chicken stock)
  • A tin of chickpeas in water – do not drain the chickpeas
  • Lemon zest and a squeeze of lemon juice
  • Salt and pepper
  • Chopped parsley and potatoes to serve

METHOD:

  • Heat a little oil in the bottom of a large pan, and fry the sausages over a medium heat while you prepare the other ingredients. Turn them so they brown evenly. 
  • Slice the celery, leaves and stems, and chop the garlic.
  • Remove the browned sausages from the pan, and turn to a low to medium heat with a bit of extra oil.
  • Add the chilli flakes, and as soon as they start to sizzle, add the garlic and stir for a minute or two. 
  • Before the garlic starts to scorch, add the wine, stir to deglaze the bottom of the pan, and then add the celery, stock, chickpeas and the water in the chickpea can (this will thicken the gravy in the casserole). Add grated lemon zest, salt and pepper, bring to a simmer and then add the sausages. 
  • Cover and simmer for around 30 minutes. Once the celery is tender, it should be ready but if there is too much liquid for your liking, take off the lid and simmer to reduce this for around five minutes. 
  • Adjust seasoning and add a squeeze of lemon juice. 

I served this with new potatoes, the whole lot garnished with chopped parsley. 

Sausage casserole with smoked paprika

We are in that zone where the deliveries to our island shops are unpredictable, with bad weather and uncertainty with ferry maintenance. The consequence can be that the local shops have to sell volumes of short-dated groceries, and I managed to buy a lot of sausages, which are now in a number of local freezers. There was also a good supply of spinach leaves. Another top tip – if you are freezing overstocked spinach, steam it first and freeze it in 100g or 200g containers. 

This recipe came from a local collection of recipes, there are a few other sausage recipes in there. I do have a weakness for sausage casserole, so delicious with potatoes and green vegetables. 

INGREDIENTS:

  • Olive oil
  • 1 onion, finely chopped
  • 1 clove of garlic, finely chopped
  • 1 large stick of celery, chopped
  • 2 bell peppers, roughly chopped
  • 1 pack of six sausages, around 400g
  • 1 tsp sweet smoked paprika
  • 1/2 tsp ground cumin
  • 1/2 tsp chilli flakes
  • 2 cans of chopped tomatoes (2x400g)
  • 1 can of cannellini beans, drained
  • 1 large or two small bags of spinach, around 250g

METHOD:

  • In a large casserole dish, heat the olive oil and then fry the onion for five minutes, medium heat. 
  • Next, add the celery, garlic and peppers, stir together and cook for another five minutes
  • Add the spices, and turn the heat up for a minute or two, then add the sausages. Cook until they are beginning to brown, and then add the tomatoes and beans, and bring to a simmer. 
  • Cover and cook for 40 minutes. Once the casserole is cooked, add the spinach and bring back to a simmer. 

Serve with mashed potatoes or brown rice, as well as side dishes of vegetables. 

Smokey sausage casserole

Hello all. I’m using up all of the ingredients at the bottom of the freezer, ready for the mutton carcase that is coming tomorrow. I’m very excited; meat from local crofts is usually of exceptionally high quality and good flavour. 

This recipe used a pack of six pork sausages that we had bought because they were reduced. You could use more sausages quite easily. I’ve made this a few times, and think I have finally got it to my satisfaction. 

INGREDIENTS:

  • 1 tbsp olive oil
  • 1 pack of sausages
  • 1 onion, finely chopped
  • 1 stick of celery, finely chopped
  • 2 cloves of garlic, finely chopped
  • 2 peppers, (green or red, your choice) roughly chopped
  • 1 tsp smokey paprika
  • 1/2 tsp ground cumin
  • 1/2 tsp chilli flakes
  • (as an alternative to paprika and chilli, you could use flakes of chipotle chilli)
  • 2 cans of chopped tomatoes
  • 1 can of cannellini beans or red kidney beans
  • 1 bag of spinach, around 200g

METHOD:

  • Heat the oil in the bottom of your chosen casserole dish, and fry the sausages until they are browned all over, and then set aside. 
  • In the same pan, fry the onion over a low heat for around five minutes, and when it starts to soften, add the celery, garlic and peppers, along with the spices, and cook for another five minutes. 
  • Add the chopped tomatoes, beans and sausages, and turn up the heat until the stew is simmering. Cover and simmer for 40 minutes. Check from time to time, stir and add a little water if necessary. 
  • At the end of the cooking time, rinse and roughly chop the spinach and add it to the pot. Once it has wilted, the stew is ready to serve. 

It would be quite possible to leave out the spinach and still have a splendid stew. We like this with mashed potatoes, or with crusty bread. 

 

Italian Sausage Casserole

In the freezer I had a large Italian pork sausage, flavoured with fennel. I made this stew, which could be made with any good quality coarse pork sausage, for example a Cumberland sausage. The stew is very easy to make, and we served it with creamed potato and celeriac mash, and sea kale florets. 

INGREDIENTS;

  • 2 tbsp olive oil
  • Coarse Italian pork sausages, or similar – around 500g of sausages or a little more
  • 1 large onion, finely sliced
  • 2 cloves of garlic
  • 1 tsp Kashmiri chilli powder, or other chilli powder
  • 1 tsp date syrup, or treacle or dark brown sugar
  • 1 can chopped tomatoes
  • 300ml stock
  • 2 tbsp tomato puree
  • 1 tsp mixed herbs (I used the mystery herbs from Italy)
  • salt and pepper

METHOD:

  • Fry the sausages in the oil in a large frying pan for around 8 minutes, until they are browned. Transfer to a casserole dish. 
  • Fry the onions in the same pan over a medium heat, for around 5 minutes, until they are beginning to brown.
  • Add the crushed garlic and chilli, and cook, stirring for another couple of minutes
  • Add the stock, tomatoes, puree and herbs, and bring to a simmer. For children who don’t like finding bits of onion in their food, you can puree the sauce at this stage. 
  • Pour over the sausages in the casserole dish, and simmer gently for 30 minutes. Season with salt and pepper. 

This tastes better if it is not boiling hot, let it sit for a few minutes whilst preparing the mash and vegetables.