No, most of my meals are pretty simple. Occasionally I'll spend 45 minutes to an hour making dinner. But most times, I prefer for my meal to be ready in 30 minutes or less. I mean c'mon...I've got things to do in the evenings. Like think about going back to taekwondo, and checking facebook, and reading Harry Potter (I'm on book six finally), and thinking about going to the gym, and taking a bubble bath!
Which is why I was absolutely thrilled to learn about this new ingredient that I had never experienced before until I stumbled upon it on another blogger's page. What is this amazing ingredient you ask? Well. Let me tell you. It is delicious. It is (somewhat) healthy. It is PRECOOKED. It comes in lots of different yummy flavors. Did I mention that it's precooked? Ladies and Gentlemen, may I introduce you to the new star of at least 2 of my home cooked dinners each week from now on: Chicken Sausage!!!
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| 1 Link: 180 calories; 12 grams fat; 820 mg sodium; 13 grams Protein |
Haha! Surprised? Probably alot of you already know about this product and have used it many times. I, on the other hand, am the kind of "cook" who thinks that the only two things to make a meal around are chicken breast or hamburger meat. Okay, and maybe occasionally tuna or salmon. I tend to steer clear of anything else. Not because I don't like anything else, but mostly because I either A) don't know how to cook it, or B) don't know that it exists!! Like Chicken Sausage! But now that I have found this wondrous food, you can bet I'll be adding it to my grocery list every week!
The kind I bought was the Johnsonville brand, and I got two packages: one package of Chicken Sausage Apple and one package of Chicken Sausage Chipotle Monterey Jack Cheese. I used the apple flavor last night and it was perfect. You could just taste the hint of sweet apple, and it complimented the light lemon-butter sauce I made perfectly. The blog that I got my inspiration from recommended a different brand (Al Fresco) but they didn't have it at my Tom Thumb. I don't think they offer it in Texas at all - I checked the website already. It does look good though. And it's actually more healthy than the Johnsonville brand, so if you have access to that or something else, I'd say go for it. Either way, its still healthier and has less fat than regular sausage.
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| 1 Link: 160 calories; 7 grams fat; 480 mg sodium; 14 grams Protein |
And now for the actual meal. Here's my ingredient list. I know it is super long and complicated....
- about 2 servings (4 oz) whole wheat Rotini pasta
- chopped asparagus (about a third of a "bunch")
- 2 handfuls of fresh spinach
- 1 package Johnsonville Chicken Sausage with Apples (I only used 3 links)
- Tablespoon (or two) of Smart Balance
- A few squirts of lemon juice (fresh would be best but I used bottled)
First I cooked the pasta and when it was about half way done, I added the chopped asparagus to the water. This is method serves 2 purposes: 1) you use one less pot/pan to cook the asparagus and 2) this is about the perfect amount of time to cook the green vegetable without it getting too soggy and mushy. Because seriously, who likes mushy green vegetables? As the noodles and asparagus are cooking, I took 3 of the chicken sausages and sliced them to about half-an-inch-or-so thick and threw them in a pan on medium heat to warm up (just a few minutes will do since they're already cooked!!) Next, I took the spinach, tore it into smaller pieces, and threw that into the bottom of a colander. Then, I drained the perfectly cooked noodles and asparagus into the colander, allowing the hot water to wilt the spinach just enough so that I can add it seamlessly to my dish. Then, I tossed everything (noodles, asparagus, spinach, chicken sausage) and added a little bit of Smart Balance and some lemon juice. And VIOLA! A super delicious, mostly healthy, husband-approved dinner that was literally prepared, cooked and eaten within 30 minutes.
Ah-mazing. :-)
How much time do you usually spend making dinner?
Do you do anything special to decrease the prep/cook time?
Are there any ingredients you constantly use that make your meal making a breeze?
