Make-Fast Mondays: Cheesy Grits with Sausage, Fried Egg and Collard Greens

Making this meal won't take much time, but it will take up some space on your stove -- you’ve got the grits going in one pan, you’re frying eggs in another, and using a third pan to cook the sausage and greens. But trust me, it’s worth having to clean a few dirty dishes.

Cheesy Grits with Sausage, Fried Egg and Collard Greens 
Serves 4
3 cups lowfat milk
¾ cup quick-cooking grits
1 cup grated sharp white cheddar
2 tablespoons olive oil
14-ounce smoked turkey sausage, sliced
1 tablespoon minced garlic
1 bunch collard greens, stems removed and leaves cut into thin strips
¼ cup chicken broth
¼ -½ teaspoon red pepper flakes (depending on your spice preference)
1 tablespoon butter
4 large eggs
Garnishes: Salt and pepper, Tabasco sauce

Bring milk to a boil in a medium saucepan. Slowly stir in the grits. Cover the pan and reduce heat to low and simmer for 5-6 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add grated cheese and stir grits until cheese has melted into the grits. Cover and remove from heat.

While grits are cooking, heat 1 tablespoon olive oil over medium heat in a frying pan or skillet. Add sausage and cook until browned, 4-6 minutes. Use a slotted spoon to transfer sausage from pan to a plate.

Heat remaining tablespoon olive oil in same frying pan over medium heat. Add garlic and sauté for a minute, until fragrant. Add collard greens, chicken broth and red pepper flakes. Cook greens, stirring occasionally, for about 5 minutes, until greens are just wilted but still bright green.

Just before serving, melt butter over medium heat in a large nonstick pan. Crack eggs into the hot pan and cook until the eggs have reached desired consistency. I cooked mine for 3 minutes, until the whites were set but the yolks were still runny. Divide grits among four bowls. Top each bowl with greens, sausage and a fried egg. Season with salt, pepper and Tabasco sauce as desired.

Make-Fast Mondays: Skillet Sausage with Green Apples and Cabbage

What do I love about this meal? Lots of flavor, short shopping list and you only have to wash a couple dishes!

Skillet Sausage with Green Apples and Cabbage 
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 small yellow onion, sliced
1 teaspoon fresh thyme (dried thyme will work, too)
12 ounces smoked turkey sausage, sliced
2 Granny Smith apples, cored and sliced
1 pound shredded green cabbage
¼ cup water
1 tablespoon red wine vinegar

Warm olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add onions and thyme and sauté for 4-5 minutes, until onions start to soften. Add sausage and apples to pan and continue to cook for another 5 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add cabbage and water, cover and simmer until cabbage is tender, about 5 minutes. Remove skillet from heat, stir in the red wine vinegar, and enjoy.

I've got the hots for Creole seasoning

Red bell peppers were on sale, as was sausage, and I craved a tomato-y sauce. Here’s what I came up with — a quick dinner packed with smoke and sass thanks to the Creole seasoning I love because it tastes good in just about everything.

Creole Sausage and Brown Rice
14-ounce smoked turkey sausage, diced
1 teaspoon olive oil
2 cups diced celery
1 medium yellow onion, diced
1 14.5-ounce can diced tomatoes with green chiles in juice
1 14.5-ounce can black beans, rinsed and drained
2 garlic cloves, minced
2 red bell peppers, seeded and diced
2 teaspoons Creole seasoning
Cooked brown rice, about 1 ½ cups per serving

Warm olive oil over medium-high heat in large frying pan. Add garlic and onions and cook, stirring frequently, for a couple minutes. Add celery and cook an additional couple minutes before adding bell peppers. Cook vegetables for another minute. Reduce heat to medium and stir in diced tomatoes, Creole seasoning and sausage. Let simmer for a few minutes, until sausage heated through. Spoon over rice and serve.

Giving French lentils a go

My favorite bargain grocery store has an amazing bulk-food selection, and I love buying all kinds of herbs, rice, beans and other goodies for next to nothing. Imagine my delight when, during a recent visit, I stumbled upon French lentils for little over a dollar a pound. I’ve encountered a couple recipes involving French lentils in the past but never seemed to find them in the store. These guys seem smaller than regular lentils, but also seemed to hold their shape better when cooked.

French Lentils with Smoky Sausage
1 teaspoon olive oil
1 white onion, chopped
1 cloves garlic, minced
2 carrots, chopped
2 celery stalks, chopped
1 14-ounce can diced tomatoes
1 14-ounce smoked sausage, diced
1 ¼ cups French lentils
4 cups low-sodium chicken broth
1 teaspoon Creole seasoning

Heat oil in soup pot over moderately high heat. Add onions and garlic and sauté for a couple minutes before adding carrots and celery and sautéing for about five more minutes. Stir in sausage, tomatoes, lentils, Creole seasoning and broth and bring to a boil. Drop down to medium heat and let pot simmer until lentils are tender, about 30 minutes, and serve in bowls.