Spaghetti Squash Enchilada Casserole with Jalapeno Chicken Sausage

Last week I made spicy corn on the grill.  While I was grilling the corn, what you didn’t see on the right side of my grill was a package of spicy chicken jalapeno sausages roasting away.  I cooked them for the same amount of time as my corn (12-14 min).  As my corn and sausage did its thing on the grill, I thought about what I wanted to make with my (planned) leftover corn that could be made ahead and reheated easily later that evening for dinner… Casserole!  One of my most favorite things to make as the weather begins to become more fall like is casserole.  Who doesn’t like cheesy, creamy goodness filled with squash, grilled corn and sausage??  No one I know.  So, next time you’ve got some leftover corn… make this casserole!  It freezes well, could be made a day ahead and satisfies anyone’s craving for comfort food.  If you don’t feel like grilling corn or don’t have any leftover, you could use any type of corn you have on hand like canned or frozen varieties.  If possible, use frozen roasted corn to get that same charred flavor.  If you go the frozen corn route and don’t plan on firing up your grill, I also recommend cooking your sausage in the broiler or in a skillet to get some good color on it.  If you’re unsure how to cook spaghetti squash, I linked to a great tutorial by my buddy Janetha over at Meals and Moves below in the ingredient list.  Her method is by far the best I’ve tried.  Once the squash is done, I like to freeze it in one cup increments for future use.  I do the same thing with brown rice and quinoa for meals just like this.  That way, the next time I need a bit of cooked squash or quinoa, all I have to do is throw a quick defrost on it.  Serve this casserole with a dollop of Greek yogurt, hot sauce and a sprinkle of cilantro and thinly sliced green onion if desired.  

What You Need:

1 ½ cups cooked spaghetti squash (12 oz)

1 cup enchilada sauce (I used Trader Joe’s)

2 ears spicy grilled corn, kernels removed (or 1 ½ cups corn)

3 ½ grilled spicy jalapeno chicken sausages cut into small pieces (from Trader Joe's)

½ cup cooked grain, rice or small pasta like orzo (I used quinoa)

¾ cup shredded sharp cheddar, divided

1 large egg

Foil

Cooking spray

Small casserole dish that can hold about 7 cups/ 2 quarts

What To Do:

Heat your oven to 350* and spray the inside of your casserole dish evenly with cooking spray.

Combine all ingredients except for ¼ cup of the cheese and mix well.  Pour mixture into prepared casserole dish and top with remaining cheese and cover with foil.

Bake 45-50 minutes.  You’ll know it’s ready when the casserole is bubbling around all the edges.

Remove foil and hit the broiler setting on your oven to brown the top.  Stay close, as things can get burnt easily in the broiler.  Set a timer for 2 minutes and check and see if it’s browned.  If not, add 2 more minutes.

Serve immediately or allow the casserole to cool to room temperature and store in the fridge or freezer until you’re ready to eat.

**Edited to add: Makes 4 - 1.5 cup servings

Nutritional Stats for 1 Serving

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Bon Appétit!

Mary

Spicy Grilled Corn

This recipe is so simple and so tasty, I’m excited to finally be sharing it with you.  We’ve had a tradition all summer long… One evening a week we have dinner outside on the patio and it always includes grilled fish, a grilled vegetable and this grilled corn.  Better late than never, right?   Ok, now I have to come clean… This isn't really a recipe, but more of a loose guide.  You know, “a little of this & a little of that” type of recipe.  The best part you ask?  It’s totally customizable.  At our house, we like almost everything spicy and garlicky, so I used garlic powder and red pepper flakes.  If you’re not a fan of heat, you could just leave the red pepper off or use just a pinch.  If you don’t like garlic, you could use any dried spice or spice blend you like, such as Trader Joe’s 21 Seasoning Salute or lemon pepper.  Sprinkle the corn evenly with a light dusting of each of the spices.  If you have access to smoked salt, I highly recommend it, but plain salt would work well.  (Don’t be surprised if you find some smoked salt in the Trader Joe’s giveaway I’ll be hosting when I reach 100 google reader subscribers!  We’re at 95 now.)  Wondering what to do with leftovers?  I’ve got a recipe or two in the works.  Does Spaghetti Squash Enchilada Casserole with Spicy Jalapeno Chicken Sausage sound good (sneak peek at the end of this post)?  Stay tuned! 

What You Need:

4 ears corn, husks and silk removed

Garlic powder

Red pepper flakes

Smoked salt

Freshly cracked black pepper

Cooking spray or 2 tsp oil of your choice (I like garlic oil)

Foil

What To Do:

Heat your outdoor grill. 

Cut four pieces of foil that will be large enough to wrap your ears of corn in.  Place corn in the center of the foil and spray evenly with cooking spray or rub each ear of corn with a half tsp oil.

Sprinkle each ear of corn evenly with garlic powder, red pepper flakes, smoked salt and freshly cracked black pepper (or whichever spices you’re using). 

Wrap ears of seasoned corn with foil, making sure it’s tightly sealed like so.

Place corn on grill and cook for 12 - 14 minutes rotating them every couple minutes.  

Serve immediately. 

Serves 4

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Bon Appétit!

Mary

Does this look good ?  Check back next week for the recipe.

Spaghetti Squash Enchilada Casserole with Spicy Jalapeno Chicken Sausage

Pizza Margherita

Caprese salad is one of my very favorites. I love how the sweet summer tomatoes pair with the light, salty fresh mozzarella and the bright, pungent basil. Did you know that basil was originally from India (according to the wiki)?I didn’t either! That’s probably because it’s best known for being in Italian cooking. It’s a close relative to the mint plant, but had a more anise flavor (liquoricey– yep, it’s a word – I just made it up!). Can you tell I love basil? I digress. When you take those same ingredients you use to make a caprese salad and put it on a pizza, it transforms magically while in the oven into Pizza Margherita. Pretty fancy, right? Thought so. The best part about this pizza is that all you need is five simple ingredients. If you want to make your own pizza dough, feel free to, but I like to buy the premade dough from Trader Joe’s here to save time (to save even more time, you could buy a totally premade crust such as Boboli). Also, if your store doesn’t carry garlic oil, you can make your own in a snap. Just heat a quarter of a cup of olive oil to a pan over medium low heat and add two smashed cloves of garlic and cook for eight to ten minutes or until the garlic has browned a bit infusing it’s flavor into the oil. Remove the garlic cloves and allow oil to cool slightly and viola, garlic oil. If you’re feeling really, super fancy, you can make your pizza on the grill, but today I’m going to be using a pizza stone in the oven. If you don’t have a pizza stone, a baking sheet will work just fine. Enjoy with a generous squirt of sriracha and red pepper flakes.

What You Need:

1 – 16 oz ball of pizza dough (I used whole wheat)
8 oz fresh ovoline mozzarella packed in water, drained, dried & sliced into ¼” pieces
1 ½ large tomatoes, sliced into ¼“pieces & pressed between paper towels
2 - 3 Tbs basil chiffonade (thinly sliced – to taste)
2 Tbs garlic oil

Salt and pepper (optional – to taste)
cornmeal for pizza stone (if using)
flour for dusting

What To Do:

Heat your pizza stone in a 425* oven for 15 – 20 minutes. This ensures that the crust will be nice and crisp on the outside, but doughy on the inside. For best result, take your dough ball out of the fridge while the pizza stone heats (about 20 minutes). Once your dough has come to temperature, roll it out on a well floured surface to about a 12” round.

Remove the hot pizza stone from the oven and sprinkle with cornmeal to prevent sticking.

Gently transfer your dough onto it and pierce with a fork all over to prevent bubbles while it bakes.


Bake the crust for about 10 minutes or until barely browned. Keep your eye on it as you don’t want it to overcook (you’ll be baking it again with toppings).

After the crust has prebaked, remove from the oven, brush with garlic oil and top with tomato and cheese slices. Season with salt and pepper if using. Bake for an additional 12-15 minutes or until cheese has melted and the crust is nicely browned.

Remove pizza from oven and top with fresh basil chiffonade.

Serve with red pepper flakes and hot sauce.














Makes 8 slices.

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**Edited to add: Here are the nutritional stats for 1 slice.**

Bon Appetit!
Mary


**Cook’s Note: On the tomatoes: make sure you really get as much liquid as you can out of the tomatoes. If not, the liquid in them will make your pizza soggy. On the basil: if you don't want to chiffonade, you could simply chop it up to whatever size you desire.**



Spicy Greek Grilled Vegetable & Orzo Salad

You’ll want to make sure you keep your orzo warm by not rinsing it after it cooks. Instead, I like to toss it with a half teaspoon of olive oil after draining it. When it’s warm, the pasta can better absorb the flavors of the vinaigrette. Now the trick with the olives, peppers and onions is to make sure that everything is the same size. The best way to do this is to quarter your olives first so you know what size you’re going to want your pepper and onion to be. Make this salad as spicy as you like by just dialing up the red pepper flakes. We like really spicy food, so I used a rounded teaspoon here. I recommend starting out with a half of a teaspoon and going from there, making it to suit your taste. Serve at room temperature for best results. If you didn’t feel like heating up your grill, you could sauté the onion and pepper in a teaspoon of oil over medium high heat for about eight minutes or until well browned.

What You Need:

½ lb orzo
1 red bell pepper, quarter – remove seeds & membrane
1 medium red onion, sliced horizontally in ½“pieces – leave skin on, it burns off on the grill
½ cup pitted kalamata olives, quartered
2 tsp fresh oregano, minced & divided
2 Tbs lemon juice
3 Tbs olive oil, plus ½ tsp
½ - 1 tsp red pepper flakes (to taste – I use 1+)
¼ tsp kosher salt & freshly cracked pepper

What To Do:

Cook orzo according to the packages instructions in well salted water to al dente. Once the pasta is done, drain and toss with ½ tsp olive oil to prevent sticking. Set aside.

While the pasta cooks, whisk together lemon juice, 3 Tbs olive oil, 1 tsp oregano, red pepper flakes, salt and pepper in a large bowl. Toss the warm pasta into the dressing, mix well and set aside.

Heat an outdoor grill to 400*. Over a medium high heat, grill onions and peppers until deeply browned on both sides. The time will vary depending on the thickness of your vegetables. Mine took about 15 minutes.

Cut grilled pepper and onion into ¼ “pieces. They should be about the same size as the quartered olives. Add vegetables, olives and remaining oregano to the pasta and vinaigrette – stir to combine. Serve at room temperature with additional red pepper flakes to pass at the table.

Serves 6

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**Edited to add: Here are the nutritional stats for 1 of 6 generous servings.**

Bon Appetit!
Mary