Cajun Sausage and Potatoes

Cajun Sausage and Potatoes

Cajun Sausage and Potatoes. Well, that’s my version. The original pin came from Recipes from the Big Blue Binder. Their post was for Oven Roasted Sausage and Potatoes. YUM! Over time mine has evolved a bit as you’ll see below.

This is a hearty meal. You can really kick it up in spice or keep it mellow.

You’ll need:

1 package of smoked sausage (slice into rounds, I like to also half the rounds)

1 large onion, peeled and chopped (I typically use half an onion)

5 large potatoes, peeled and chopped into 1/2 inch cubes (I usually use 3-4 potatoes and slice then quarter)

Olive oil

Sea salt

Ground black pepper

Sweet paprika*

Dried thyme*

About a cup grated cheddar cheese

          *in lieu of these two ingredients I use a cajun blend20160502_162044.jpg

Get started:

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees and line a 13×9 baking dish with aluminum foil. They suggest drizzling oil over the aluminum foil. I like to just spray with cooking spray.

Then you want to chop chop chop. I like to add thing into a bowl in layers. A little oil and onion with some Cajun mix and the S&P.20160502_162143.jpg

Then add in some potatoes and mix adding extra seasoning/oil as needed to coat. Repeat until onion and potatoes are chopped and added to your mixing bowl and everything is coated.

I cut up my sausage and before adding it to the baking dish, I drizzle a little oil over it and add the Cajun, salt, and pepper spices to it. 20160502_163509.jpg20160502_163709.jpg20160502_163758.jpg

Then I spread it out in the baking dish.

Over that, spread the potato and onion mix and give it all a light mix.

You’ll then bake it for about 45 minutes giving it a stir several times while it cooks.

Last sprinkle your cheddar cheese over the top and let it bake a few minutes more until the cheese is melted.

Serve and enjoy!

 

Outstanding Sausage Pasta with Tomato Cream Sauce!

Being 8 months pregnant, I’ve had constant cravings. Nothing weird or even odd combinations, but rather for specific foods. I went through a 2 week span of wanting lasagna. That soon morphed into a desire for desserts…hot fudge sundaes to be exact. My sweet husband has endured all the changes and even indulged me in the week of only fast food and eating out because I couldn’t stand the smells of cooking in the kitchen.

Although I’ve had a beastly heartburn problem lately, I still love my saucy pastas and spicy foods. I was so excited when I came across this pin. It was everything I wanted and then some. I started to follow this great blog, South Your Mouth written by Mandy Rivers. You can hear the southern in her writing and it makes me feel at home. Plus it doesn’t hurt that I can barely make it through reading a recipe without drooling.

This is my second time making this and my result is a bit different, but on purpose! The changes I made were due to wanting to eat this but not having her exact ingredients on hand at the time and I liked it so much I just went with it again. But isn’t that part of the fun of cooking? You can make alterations that you’d prefer or just to work with what you have! Next time I’m going to use cajun sausage! But trust me folks, this is so good! It fits all of the most important criteria: fast, easy, delicious, and better reheated! You can find the link to her recipe here, mine, with alterations, is below.

Sausage Pasta with Tomato Cream Sauce

Sausage and tomato pasta final

 

8+ ounces penne pasta (or whatever you prefer)

12 oz smoked sausage

2 14-oz can petite diced tomatoes, drained well

1 teaspoon dried oregano

1 teaspoon garlic powder

1 teaspoon salt

1 pint (2 cups) heavy cream

1/4 cup mozzarella cheese

Directions:

1. Cook pasta per manufacturer’s instructions for al dente preparation then drain well.

2. I sliced the sausage and threw into a hot deep skillet, with a little water for a good browning while the pasta cooked.

If you use some other meat and need to drain fat or some of your water do so now after everything is browned and yummy.

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3. Add drained tomatoes, oregano, garlic powder and salt and stir well. Add cream and bring to a slight boil.

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4. Reduce heat to medium and simmer, uncovered, for 8-10 (I usually do 10 or 12ish) minutes or until sauce is reduced and thickened. Add cheese a little at a time to blend it in.

5. Remove skillet from heat then add cooked pasta. Stir well to combine then serve.

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UPDATE! Last night as I didn’t have the usual ingredients to make this, I substituted with wonderful results. I used small shells instead of penne, 1 can diced tomatoes with onion instead of 2, cheddar cheese instead of mozz, and added CAJUN seasoning!!!! SO SO GOOD! My leftovers for lunch today were so good I had to have seconds!