Currywurst

A quick and easy dinner that's perfect for October. Pair with German beer and pretend you're in Berlin.

One year ago: Yogurt-Marinated Lamb with Ginger and Garlic
Two years ago: Refrigerator Dinner Rolls
Three years ago: Chinese Beef with Broccoli
Four years ago: Southwestern Egg Rolls

Currywurst (from Planet Barbecue!)

Ingredients
2 tbsp vegetable oil
1/4 cup very finely minced white onion
1 tsp mustard seeds
1 tbsp curry powder
1/2 tsp ground black pepper
1/4 tsp freshly grated nutmeg
1/4 tsp anise seed
1 cup ketchup
4 weisswurt or other white veal sausages

1. Heat 1 tbsp oil in medium-size saucepan over medium heat. Add onion and mustard seeds and cook until onion begins to brown, 3 - 4 minutes.
2. Stir in curry powder, pepper, nutmeg, and aniseed and cook until fragrant, 1 minute.
3. Stir in ketchup and simmer until thick and richly flavored, 3 - 5 minutes.
4. Preheat grill to high. Brush and oil grill grate. Arrange sausages on hot grate 1" apart. Grill until crusty and brown on all sides and cooked through (2 - 3 minutes per side for cooked and 8 - 10 minutes per side for uncooked).
5. Transfer sausages to cutting board, cut crosswise into 1/4" slices, place sausages in shallow bowls, and spoon curried tomato sauce on top to serve.

Rigatoncini with Sausage, Fresh Ricotta, and Orange Zest

Fresh ricotta is a wonderful thing and it shines it this recipe with a little bit of orange zest to brighten it up. We used a nice lamb sausage from our CSA box with this and it worked beautifully. Although this recipe works great as is, I think there are two small changes that could push it over the edge into phenomenal. First, the sausage slices sometimes mean the meat gets lost in the dish. They could be cut up smaller OR even better, maybe crumbled and then you could skip the step of roasting the sausage in the oven. I also wanted a bit of green in the dish to make it more visually appealing. Next time, I would probably wilt some baby spinach on top.

One year ago: Cashew Cheese with a Bell Pepper Sauce
Two years ago: Thai-inspired Tacos
Three years ago: Vegetable Lasagna

Rigatoncini with Sausage, Fresh Ricotta, and Orange Zest (The Cheesemonger's Kitchen)

Ingredients
1 lb/455g whole Italian sweet sausages
1 lb/455g dried rigatoncini pasta
6 tbsp extra-virgin olive oil
4 garlic cloves, peeled
1 lb/455g fresh ricotta cheese
100g grated Pecorino Romano cheese
2 oranges, for zesting

1. Preheat oven to 375F.
2. Place sausages on a baking sheet and roast for 25 - 30 minutes or until cooked through.
3. Let sausages cool and cut into 6 pieces each.
4. Bring plenty of salted water to a boil. Add pasta and cook until al dente (9 - 12 minutes).
5. Meanwhile, heat olive oil in large saute pan. Add sausages along with garlic and saute over medium-high heat for 4 - 5 minutes until crisp and garlic is golden.
6. Splash in a tablespoon of the pasta water to stop garlic from cooking. Remove from heat and ricotta to sausages.
7. Drain cooked pasta and add to pan.
8. Add half of pecorino and toss well.
9. Zest oranges into pasta and toss again. Season with salt and pepper.
10. Serve with remaining pecorino.

Braised Rabbit with Roasted Red Pepper and Merguez Sausage

I wasn't going to post this recipe because the effort to reward ratio just seemed off, but that was before I tasted the leftovers. After I little time with the flavours melding in the fridge, this dish was nothing short of amazing. It may not be the easiest thing to make, but I've changed my mind and decided it's worth it. Recipe below is scaled in half from the original. Feel free to double it back up!

One year ago: Green Curry Shrimp with Rice
Two years ago: Almost Eggs Benedict

Braised Rabbit with Roasted Red Peppers and Merguez Sausage (from All About Braising)

Ingredients
1 rabbit
Marinade
1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
1/2 tbsp sherry vinegar
3/4 tsp coarse salt
1/4 tsp crushed red pepper flakes
Stock
1/2 medium yellow onion (3 ounces), thickly sliced
1/2 medium carrot, thickly sliced
1 garlic clove, unpeeled, smashed
small handful parsley stems
3 black peppercorns
1 bay leaf
coarse salt
1 1/2 cup chilled chicken stock or water
Braise
1 large red bell pepper (6 - 7 ounces)
1 1/2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
1/2 medium yellow onion (3 ounces), finely chopped
1/2 celery stalk, finely chopped
2 cloves garlic, thinly sliced
1/2 tsp pimenton or paprika
1/2 tbsp tomato paste
3 tbsp sherry
2 tbsp chopped parsley
1/4 pound merguez sausage, cut into 1" pieces
salt and pepper
For liver and kidneys
1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
2 tbsp sherry
salt and pepper

1. Preheat oven to 450F.
2. Butcher the rabbits so that you have the saddle and 4 legs separated from the rest of the rabbit (the book does an excellent job of describing this). Set liver and kidneys aside. Chop remaining carcass into 2 - 3 inch chunks.
3. Place chopped up carcass and belly flaps in lightly oiled roasting pan and roast until lightly browned and sizzling, 30 - 35 minutes.
4. Marinate rabbit legs and saddle with marinade ingredients for at least 2 hours.
5. Place roasted bones in small stockpot. Deglaze roasting pan with 2 tbsp water and add to pot. Add stock ingredients and simmer for at least 1.5 hours.
6. Roast red peppers, peel, and cut into 2 by 1/4" strips.
7. Heat oven to 300F.
8. Heat 1 tbsp olive oil in a shallow braising pan or large skillet over medium-high heat. Sear rabbit pieces until a golden crust forms on each side, 5 - 7 minutes. Return to bowl.
9. Drain pan of all but a few teaspoons of fat. Add onion and celery and cook until softened and tinged brown, 6 minutes. Add garlic, pimenton, and tomato paste and cook until you smell the garlic, 1 - 2 minutes. Add 2 tbsp sherry and bring to a boil until reduced to a wet paste. Add strained rabbit stock and boil at a strong simmer until only 1/2 cup liquid remains, about 15 minutes.
10. Add rabbit legs to simmering liquid along with half of parsley. Place saddle on top. Cover with a piece of parchment and place lid on top. Slide into oven and braise for 1 hour.
11. Meanwhile, heat 1/2 tbsp of oil in large skillet. Cook sausage and transfer to a plate. Drain excess fat. Add pepper strips, remaining 1 tbsp sherry and stir until heated through. Return sausage to pan and set aside.
12. Separate liver into 3 lobes. Season liver and kidneys with salt and pepper. Heat olive oil in small skillet and sear organs on each side until cooked through. Transfer to plate. Deglaze pan with sherry and reduce to glaze. Pour over organs.
13. When rabbit is almost tender, remove from oven and add in sausage-pepper mix. Stir to blend. Return parchment paper and lid and slide back into oven to braise until rabbit is fork tender, about 10 minutes. Uncover, stir in liver and kidney and sprinkle with remaining parsley. Serve.

Grilled Sausages with Celery Root Salad with Hazelnuts and Arugula

It's rare that a recipe surprises me by being quicker and easier than the name would suggest. But this is a recipe that's a full meal that can be completed in the time it takes you to preheat the broiler and cook the sausages. The side dish salad would be perfect with other dishes as well (maybe even creamy mustard pork?).

One year ago: Sun-dried Tomato Gnocchi with Porcini Mushroom Broth
Two years ago: Pear Bread

Grilled Sausages with Celery Root Salad with Hazelnuts and Arugula (from Cook This Now)

Ingredients
560g sausage of your choice
Mustard vinaigrette
1 small garlic clove, finely chopped
1/4 tsp kosher salt plus 1 small pinch
1 tsp Dijon mustard
2 tsp sherry vinegar
3 tbsp extra-virgin olive oil
freshly ground black pepper
Salad
1 medium celery root, trimmed and peeled
5 cups arugula or other salad green
1/4 cup finely chopped toasted hazelnuts

1. Preheat broiler. Prick sausages with fork. Lay them on a baking sheet. Broil 3" from heat until browned on both sides, 3 - 4 minutes per side.
2. Meanwhile, smash the garlic and pinch of salt to make a paste. Whisk in a small bowl with mustard, vinegar, and salt. Slowly drizzle in oil and whisk until fully incorporated. Season with pepper.
3. Meanwhile, grate celery root in food processor. Transfer to a bowl and add salad greens and hazelnuts.
4. Pour vinaigrette over salad and toss well. Season with more salt, lemon juice, and/or olive oil if desired.

Cornbread and Chorizo Stuffing

I briefly contemplated doing a pumpernickel stuffing this year for Thanksgiving before going back to the cornbread comfort zone. I wanted to give it a southwestern flavour, so what better to pair cornbread with than chorizo? Of course, when I went to the store, all they had was merguez, so that didn't go as planned, but it was still tasty. The liquid amounts on the original recipe seemed entirely too low and some of the reviews stated it was a bit dry, so I doubled the egg and stock and found it stayed plenty moist. I also doubled the amount of sausage in the recipe, because who doesn't want more sausage?

Cornbread and Chorizo Stuffing (adapted from epicurious, originally Gourmet)

Ingredients
1 recipe cornbread
1/2 pound Spanish chorizo (cured spiced pork sausage), casing removed and sausage chopped
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
2 medium onions, coarsely chopped (3 cups)
4 celery ribs, coarsely chopped (3 cups)
2 tablespoons chopped garlic
1 teaspoon dried oregano
2 cups reduced-sodium chicken broth
2 large eggs

1. Preheat oven to 350°F with racks in upper and lower thirds of oven. Butter a 3-quart shallow baking dish.
2. Crumble corn bread into 1/2-inch pieces, spreading out in 1 layer in 2 large 4-sided sheet pans. Bake, stirring occasionally, until dry, about 20 minutes. Cool completely and transfer to a large bowl.
3. Meanwhile, cook chorizo in oil in a 12-inch heavy skillet over medium-high heat, stirring occasionally, until crisp, 1 to 2 minutes.
4. Add onions, celery, garlic, oregano, and 1 1/4 teaspoon salt and sauté until vegetables are softened, about 10 minutes.
5. Add to vegetables corn bread.
6. Whisk together broth and egg, then pour over stuffing and toss well.
7. Transfer to baking dish and cover tightly with buttered foil. Bake in upper third of oven 1 hour.
8. Remove foil and bake until top is golden, about 15 minutes more.