I’ve been trying to cut down on going out to eat lately. It ends up being a big expense and putting in a bit of time can really cut down on that spending. However, saving around $15 a day eating hummus, cheese and spinage pitas for lunch and noodle soup for dinner does leave something to be desired in the long run.

Tonight I was craving some spicy sausage and peppers over pasta so I went to the supermarket on my way home from work and picked up $7 worth of ingredients which made enough food for about five meals with leftover ingredients. What follows is my recipe for an easy to make sausage and pepper marinara over pasta. Measurements vary as I usually go by taste and sight.

Serving size 2

Ingredients:
1 green bell pepper
1/2 large onion or 1 small onion
3 links of spicy Italian sausage
extra virgin olive oil
minced garlic
dry Italian spice mix (basil, parsley, etc.)
red pepper flakes
black pepper
salt
1 small can of tomato sauce

Heat up a large sauce pan and coat with olive oil. Throw in the garlic and fry the sausage until both sides are seared. Don’t overcook, just cook them enough to get some oils from the sausage. Preheat the oven to broil and place the sausages in a broiling safe pan. Broil for 15 minutes. While the sausage is cooking, slice the onion and bell pepper. Put some more olive oil into the pan and throw in some more minced garlic to taste. Saute the vegetables over medium heat until they are soft. Add pepper, salt, Italian spices and red pepper flakes to taste. Saute a bit more and add the can of tomato sauce. Simmer on low heat. Start boiling a pot of water, adding salt to cook the pasta. After the sausage is done, cut them at an angle and make sure they are not too pink. A little pink is ok as they will cook longer in the sauce. Add the sausage to the simmering sauce. If you wish, pour the oil from the pan the sausages cooked in into the sauce. Serve the sauce over the pasta, adding a glass of red wine and you are good to go.

Time to make: 30 minutes and tastes as good as any restaurant I have ever been to.

WARNING: It was noted to me that it is unsafe to use a Pyrex dish in the broiler. This is because broilers heat unevenly which can cause the Pyrex dish to shatter. Use a dish that has been marked safe for use in a broiler or simply bake the sausages and adjust the timing accordingly.

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