Tag: barbecue
Peppers and Onions: A Side Dish Recipe to serve with Grilled Sausages
I love sausage and pepper sandwiches. I love the savory sausage with the sweet peppers and onions. Typically green pepper are served with the dish- I prefer sausage and pepper sandwiches made out of the red and orange peppers. I usually start with the sausages and then add either crushed tomatoes or tomato sauce. I then proceed with the onions and peppers- lots of oregano and basil later- a great dish is done! I toast a crusty baguette and rub the insides with a fresh garlic clove. The sausage and peppers are then topped with either a sharp provolone cheese or fresh mozzarella. It’s a great sandwich, especially with a great glass of cabernet.
In the summer, I do a variation of the sandwich. I am in no mood to spend a lot of time in front of the stove. We like to grill as much as possible- especially on the weekends. I always have chicken sausages in the fridge/freezer. This time I bought aged cheddar and spinach ones from Costco- they are delicious! Anyway, I grilled them and slices of a large baguette drizzled with olive oil and rubbed with garlic. I cooked the peppers and onions quickly on the stove with lots of fresh basil and brought it outside. We had all the components of a sausage and pepper sandwich separately- and they all tasted really well together. It was a yummy and simple meal- perfect for a Sunday evening or a weeknight.
Watermelon and Tomato Salad
I made this salad last year- and really enjoyed it. When I first heard of it, I thought, “what a strange combination”- but when I tasted it, I thought it was fabulous.
Last month, a friend was hosting a good bye party for a mutual friend and she had the meal catered from a local place in Maplewood. The meal consisted of a variety of tapas style dishes including a watermelon salad. It was good but I thought the one I had made last year was better- yes I am very modest… A friend who was there as well commented on the watermelon salad and wanted to make it and asked me to post a recipe- well, here it is Nancy!
I have seen plenty of recipes for this kind of salad. They all start with the watermelon and tomatoes, there is some kind of a vinaigrette, fresh herbs and some cheese. I went with the vinegar and cheese of my choice. I made an easy and delicious vinaigrette with balsamic vinegar- I think the rest of the vinegars in my pantry feel quite ignored- I end up using balsamic for mostly everything. I had feta cheese in the fridge- it is one of my favorites. I thought the saltiness would go really well with the sweet and cold watermelon. My favorite kind of tomatoes are grape- I use them for everything including pasta sauces- so that is what went in this salad. In terms of the fresh herbs, somehow oregano kept coming to mind.. I love feta and oregano together but it can be a very strong combination (both the ingredients are quite loud)- so I decide to tone everything down with mint. Mint brought a great freshness and balance to the salad.
Overall- a big success. I grilled chicken sausages as the main course and cooked up peppers and onions to go along. Will post the recipe on Monday. We ate the soft yummy peppers and onions with the delicious sausages. It was an easy and fast meal to make – best of all, it was delicious…