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Balsamic Sausage and Peppers…A One Pot Recipe

Ever since the first time I tried Italian sausage and peppers in an Italian restaurant I was hooked. However, the amount of fat in each sausage was not hooking me. My sausage and peppers are a classic Italian recipe revamped into a filling, easy and healthy one pan recipe, perfect for any quick week night dinner!

Balsamic Sausage and Peppers. Girl and the Kitchen

I’ll tell you guys a little secret. Ā My evening cooking typically does not start until 9pm. Ā NINE PM! Most people who meet me think that because I am a food blogger and a professional chef I have all the time in the world to frolic in my kitchen happily sauteing veggies and searing pork chops. Ā Newsflash…I don’t. Ā Ā Contrary to what many of my readers and friends think, I am a wife and mom first above all else. Ā And just like most of you I have a full time job, a rambunctious little munchkin to chase, 7 loads of clean laundry begging to be put away, lunches to pack and food for the week waiting to be made. Ā Not to mention: photos to be taken and edited, blogs to be written and cooking classes to be taught.

Yes, I am just like every other woman out there (with the exception of my beloved Bravo housewives of course…they are in a league of their own…with a staff of their own). Ā Every day I struggle to juggle all the balls in my life. Ā And sometimes, some of the balls drop.

Typically it’s laundry, hence the 7 loads of laundry yet to be folded. Ā Nonetheless, the one ball I try not to drop is the cooking. Ā For me a home cooked meal, makes all the difference in the world. Ā Even if it’s a simple bone in chicken breast done in the oven with a veggie side, when the house is filled of smells of roasting and baking, it feels like a home to me.

Unfortunately, sometimes that is all I have time and brain power for. Ā But a lot of the time I do get down and creative with my bad self and get all snazzy!

This recipe was born out of a need to free up the packed in freezer and to make a quick and healthy dish.

Classic Italian sausage and peppers are always a favorite of mine. Ā The sweetness of the red peppers, coupled with the spicy sausage and the tangy balsamic vinegar will make your taste buds sing Ā “Happy.”

And this dish was also originally born at 9:30 PM on an evening when the munchkin just would not sleep and I had to keep running back and forth between her tired cries and my roasting sausages.

And at the end of the night, when the sausages were done and munchkin was asleep, I fortunately had only ONE pan to wash and plenty of sausages to eat. Ā  And naturally these are super freezer friendly…so make a bunch for a night when it feels like all the balls are about to land on your head.

***IF you want to grill this, you can sear the sausages on the grill, then just cook everything in a pan or in foil on the grill! Ā That way there is no mess AT ALL***

This dish starts out with about 5 pounds of Italian turkey sausage. Ā I made extra so I could freeze it. (Pictured here is pork and turkey sausage, but typically I use turkey sausage)

Balsamic Sausage and Peppers. Girl and the Kitchen

Grab a large sautee pan or dutch oven, whatever your little heart desires, and drizzle some olive oil in, 1-2 tbs should do ya’. Ā Then add in your sausages and let them sear on each side for about 5 minutes PER SIDE. Ā Just let them cook on high heat guys, UNCOVERED. Ā There will be some splatters, so you may want to cover your surfaces like I did here.

Balsamic Sausage and Peppers. Girl and the Kitchen

In the meantime, cut up your peppers like so. Ā Hold the pepper up right and slice away at it.

Balsamic Sausage and Peppers. Girl and the Kitchen

Going all around the core. Ā This is an easy way to make sure none of those pesky little seeds get in there. Ā You can throw the core away along with the seeds and membranes left behind.

Balsamic Sausage and Peppers. Girl and the Kitchen

And you should have nice large pieces like this left behind.

Balsamic Sausage and Peppers. Girl and the Kitchen

Grab an onion and cut it into large wedges. Ā Sorry I have no picture of this but you can easily see in the pictures that you basically cut the onion in half and then in thirds so you have large wedges.

And there are our gorgeous sausages. Ā See how nice and golden brown they are.

Balsamic Sausage and Peppers. Girl and the Kitchen

Now for the fun part. Ā Add in your onions, peppers, about 6-8 garlic cloves and fresh basil leaves, torn by hand like a true Italiano, to your pan.

Balsamic Sausage and Peppers. Girl and the Kitchen

Add in your balsamic vinegar, red pepper flakes if you will, and water. Ā Season with salt and pepper. Ā Mix it all up. Ā Then cover with foil tightly and place into a 425 degree oven for about 15-20 minutes.

Balsamic Sausage and Peppers. Girl and the Kitchen
And now remove your foil pan. Ā There will be a glorious smell of garlic, basil and all good things Italian billowing out of the pan. Ā If the sausages are not yet ready, you can continue cooking them in the oven for a bit longer. Ā Just always make sure that there is enough liquid in the bottom of the pan so that your ingredients do not burn.

Now take the pan straight to the table with some crusty bread and maybe some pasta and have at it!

Balsamic Sausage and Peppers. Girl and the Kitchen

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Balsamic Sausage and Peppers. Girl and the Kitchen

One Pan Balsamic Sausage and Peppers


  • Author: Mila Furman

Ingredients

Scale
  • 5 lbs of turkey sausage
  • 3 red peppers (cut into large pieces)
  • 2 onions (cut into wedges)
  • 78 garlic cloves (whole)
  • 810 leaves of fresh basil
  • 1/2 cup balsamic vinegar
  • 1/2 a cup of water
  • red pepper flakes (optional)
  • salt and pepper to taste

Instructions

  1. This dish starts out with about 5 pounds of Italian turkey sausage.
  2. Grab a large sautee pan or dutch oven, whatever your little heart desires, and drizzle some olive oil in, 1-2 tbs should do ya’. Then add in your sausages and let them sear on each side for about 5 minutes PER SIDE. Just let them cook on high heat guys, UNCOVERED.
  3. In the meantime, cut up your peppers like so. Hold the pepper up right and slice away at it.
  4. Going all around the core. This is an easy way to make sure none of those pesky little seeds get in there. You can throw the core away along with the seeds and membranes left behind.
  5. And you should have nice large pieces like this left behind.
  6. Grab an onion and cut it into large wedges. Sorry I have no picture of this but you can easily see in the pic that you basically cut the onion in half and then in thirds so you have large wedges.
  7. Now for the fun part. Add in your onions, peppers, about 6-8 garlic cloves and fresh basil leaves, torn by hand like a true Italiano, to your pan.
  8. Add in your balsamic vinegar, red pepper flakes if you will, and water. Season with salt and pepper. Mix it all up. Then cover with foil tightly and place into a 425 degree oven for about 15-20 minutes.
  9. And now remove your foil pan. There will be a glorious smell of garlic, basil and all good things Italian billowing out of the pan. If the sausages are not yet ready, you can continue cooking them in the oven for a bit longer. Just always make sure that there is enough liquid in the bottom of the pan so that your ingredients do not burn.
  10. Now take the pan straight to the table with some crusty bread and maybe some pasta and have at it!
  • Category: Entree
  • Cuisine: Italian

***originally published May 19 2014***

 

 

 

 

Balsamic Sausage and Peppers. collage

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12 Comments

  1. This looks completely delicious. This recipe is definitely on my to cook list. Next time i come in from a particularly hard or exhausting day this looks like brilliant comfort food.

    1. Thanks George! It has become a go to of mine when I need something warm and easy!! Thanks for stopping by!

  2. I’m going to make this! šŸ™‚ It’s exactly what I would love to eat and make too. Plus I love balsamic! I’m going to be covering my stove top the way you do everytime! That’s genius! Especially since I hate cleaning up šŸ˜€

  3. Awesome post! I love sausage but never know what else to do with them. This gives me an idea for dinner (yummmm)
    ALso, I work for a foodtech company called Chicory. Are you interested in becoming our recipe partner?

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