Archive | Uncategorized RSS feed for this section

Here is Agnes G’s recipe for a low-carb sausage stuffing.  She says her guests don’t even touch the bread stuffing anymore.  They beg for this dish so she has to quadruple the recipe!

Agnes will be receiving a coupon for a FREE Isernio’s Chicken Sausage roll for sharing this recipe with us.  You can get free sausage too – just send us your favorite recipe for sausage stuffing (email to: info@isernio.com) before Friday November 18!

Sausage and Herb Low Carb Stuffing

• 3/4 pound Isernio’s Chicken sausage (you may use pork breakfast sausage) 
• 1/4 cup finely chopped celery 
• 1/4 cup chopped red onion 
• 2 eggs 
• 2 cups coarsely chopped cauliflower 
• 1/2 cup diced yellow squash 
• 1/2 cup grated Parmesan 
• 1 tablespoon chopped parsley leaves 
• 3 tablespoons chopped fresh sage leaves 
• 3 tablespoons chopped fresh thyme leaves 
• 1 tablespoon minced garlic 
• 1/8 teaspoon salt 
• 1/8 teaspoon fresh ground black pepper

Equipment: 8 by 8-inch square baking dish

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

Remove sausage from casing and crumble it into a pan over medium heat. Add the celery and onion and cook, stirring, until browned. Drain fat if necessary.

Beat the eggs in a bowl.  Using a spoon, mix in the sausage mixture and all the remaining ingredients. Pour the stuffing into the baking dish and bake until hot and browned, about 30 minutes. Serve immediately.

Hard to believe Turkey Day is only a week and a half away.  Do you have your menu planned out?  One of our favorite Thanksgiving dishes is, of course, sausage stuffing.   A holiday meal just isn’t complete without this savory side dish.

We want to hear from you – what’s your favorite sausage stuffing recipe?  Is it a traditional sage dressing, or a Southern style with cornbread, or do you like it a little fancier with dried cranberries or wild rice? 

Whatever it is, send us your favorite sausage stuffing recipe, and we’ll send you a coupon for a FREE Isernio’s Chicken Sausage Roll!  Between now and Friday November 18, email your recipe to us at info@isernio.com, and include your address so we can send you your coupon.   We’ll post some of the recipes on our Facebook page, to share the stuffing inspiration with everyone!

By the way, here is Frank’s favorite stuffing recipe (it’s great using our chicken sausage rolls too!).  Or check out a video of Frank making this recipe here. 

Who doesn’t love a nice warm pasta dish on these chilly fall nights?  Here’s a recipe from our friend Brian Baldwin for a hearty cannelloni with ‘Rosa’ sauce.  Give it a try and let us know what you think!

Cannelloni  – Isernio’s Sausage & Spinach

Filling:
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 small onion, chopped
1 garlic clove, minced (or more to taste)
12 oz frozen chopped spinach (thawed & drained)
8 oz. Isernio’s Hot Italian Chicken Sausage (links or roll)
8 oz. ground turkey, or Isernio’s Ground Chicken
2 teaspoon dried basil
1 teaspoon dried oregano
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2  teaspoon red pepper flakes (optional)

Béchamel Sauce: 
4 TBS butter
4 TBS flour
4 cups milk
1 tsp nutmeg
salt & pepper to taste.       

Cheese Topping:  
2 cups shredded mozzarella cheese (or shredded Italian mix – 4 Italian cheeses)

One 8-oz. package of manicotti shells

Directions:

Make the Béchamel Sauce:  In saucepan, heat butter until melted. Add flour and stir until smooth. Add milk to the butter mixture 1 cup at a time, whisking until smooth. Bring to boil, stirring constantly. Remove from heat. Season with salt, pepper and nutmeg

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.  Spray a 9 by 13 baking dish with cooking spray and set aside.

To make the filling:  In a large sauce pan heat olive oil over medium-high heat. Add sausage, turkey, onion and garlic, cook until tender and brown, about five minutes. Stir in spinach, basil, oregano, salt, pepper and red pepper flakes.  Cook about five minutes.  Stir in approx 1 cup of the béchamel sauce.

Rosa sauce: Add approx 1 1/2 cups of Hunt’s Pasta Sauce Four Cheese (or any marinara sauce and 2 cups cheese) to the balance of the béchamel sauce until it’s a nice ‘Rosa’ color.

For the pasta, add package of manicotti shells to a large pot of boiling salted water.  Parboil for four minutes. Do not overcook, they will finish cooking in the oven. Carefully remove noodles from water to cool.  Place in the original package “rack” and let cool.

Use a zip lock bag to fill the shells with the filling.  Cut a small corner of the bag and squeeze the filling into the shells like a pastry bag.

To assemble the cannelloni:  Spread about 1/2 cup of the Rosa sauce in the baking dish.  Carefully transfer filled cannelloni to pan. Top cannelloni with remaining Rosa sauce.  Cover pan with foil and bake until sauce is bubbling, about 30 minutes. Remove foil, top with 2 cups mozzarella (or Italian mix) cheese and bake for 5 additional minutes, until cheese is melted.

Makes 14 cannelloni.  Serves 4 – 6.

Football season is here, and as we all know, the food is just about as important as the game itself!  Who doesn’t love the time-honored tradition of tailgating?  Gathering before the game to enjoy food and drinks with your fellow fans is a pretty great way to spend the weekend!  Whether it’s college or pro (or heck, even managing your fantasy league in your pj’s at home) – a football game means it’s time to enjoy some good eats.

We loved the mobile feasts described in this tailgating article and tailgating recipe collection from Saveur Magazine.  (Grilled cinnamon rolls??  Yes please!).   And of course there’s always room for sausage at a tailgate party.  There are some pretty creative ways to serve it too.  How about Grilled Bratwurst with Shoestring Gremolata Fries or Italian Sausage Chili.  Or, kick off the morning by baking some of these Spicy Breakfast Sausage Biscuits and taking with you for a warm and savory start to the party.

What are your favorite tailgate foods?  Or if you don’t tailgate, what kinds of foods do you enjoy while watching the game at home?   We’d love to see your favorite recipes!

We are so pleased to announce that our products are now certified gluten free by the Gluten Free Certification Organization (GFCO), the most recognizable and leading gluten-free certification program in the world. 

The GFCO “provides an independent service to supervise gluten-free food production according to a consistent, defined, science-based standard that is confirmed by field inspections, in order to achieve heightened consumer confidence and safety.”  Their standards go beyond the requirements of government laws and regulations, to ensure shopper confidence in the products they certify, which now includes our all-natural sausage.

Isernio’s products and production methods were audited and tested by the GFCO and have been confirmed to meet their strict gluten-free standards.  We are also subject to ongoing testing to ensure we continue to meet these standards.  This means if you or a member of your family follows a gluten-free diet, you can safely and confidently enjoy Isernio’s products!

All of our products (except our British Bangers) are now certified by the GFCO – this includes all pork and chicken sausage links, rolls and ground chicken and pork.  (Our British Bangers are not certified because they contain wheat, which is stated clearly on the ingredient label).

Look for the GFCO logo on our labels soon, to make it even easier to identify our gluten-free products. Visit the FAQ section on the GFCO website for more information on their mission and audit procedures.  And of course, feel free to email us if you ever have any questions about our products.

It’s back to school time, and (dare we say it) the holidays are just around the corner, so it’s a great time to stock your freezer with quick, easy meal ideas for the busy days ahead! Don’t forget, select Costco stores are now carrying an exclusive 3-pack of our all-natural, low fat Italian Chicken Sausage Rolls at a great price ($8.99 for 3 – that’s just $3 a roll!). Thaw one out in the refrigerator overnight for a healthy, delicious dinner or breakfast the next day. This bulk sausage is perfect for use in spaghetti sauce, quiche, omelets, or even as a substitute for ground beef or turkey (it makes a fantastic burger). We have plenty of recipes on our website at www.isernio.com/recipes. Look for the exclusive 3-pack of Italian Chicken sausage at these Costco locations (and if you go on the right day, you might get a free sample too!):

Covington, WA
Issaquah, WA
Kirkland, WA
Marysville, WA
Puyallup, WA
Seattle, WA (4th Ave)
Sequim, WA
Tukwila, WA
Tumwater, WA
Woodinville, WA
Bend, OR
Anchorage, AK (Dimond Blvd.)

A recent ground turkey recall due to an outbreak of Salmonella has been in the news, which reminded us that it’s always important to keep food safety top of mind when preparing any food in your home, especially fresh meats like our pork and chicken sausage. Whether it’s a grilled sausage sandwich or a savory pasta sauce, the peace of mind from knowing you handled and cooked the sausage properly will make it that much more enjoyable!

The USDA’s Food Safety & Inspection Service recommends the following guidelines for preventing Salmonella:

• Wash hands with warm, soapy water for at least 20 seconds before and after handling raw meat and poultry.

• Also wash cutting boards, dishes and utensils with hot soapy water. Clean up spills right away.
  

• Keep raw meat, fish and poultry away from other food that will not be cooked.

• Use separate cutting boards for raw meat, poultry and egg products and cooked foods.

• Cook raw meat and poultry to safe internal temperatures before eating. The safe internal temperature for ground meat such as beef and pork is 160° F, and 165° F for poultry, as determined with a food thermometer.

• Refrigerate raw meat and poultry within two hours after purchase (one hour if temperatures exceed 90° F). Refrigerate cooked meat and poultry within two hours after cooking.

A lot of this is common sense, but it’s always a good idea to remind ourselves of these guidelines once in a while. We also think one of the best tools you can have in the kitchen is a good digital thermometer – get one that will give you an instant temperature reading (we like this one). Making sure your fresh sausage is cooked to the proper temperature will help you and your family enjoy the meal worry-free!

We found this article about all the concern AND confusion out there right now about nitrates in sausage very interesting.  Did you know that even “natural” or “organic” sausages or hot dogs can contain just as much nitrates as the traditional versions?  The natural products are just using celery juice or celery powder to create a “natural” nitrate.  But, those natural nitrates are thought to be just as dangerous as chemical nitrates, possibly increasing the risk of diabetes, heart attacks and colon cancer.

Many food manufacturers are actually trying to convince the USDA to require more specific labeling when it comes to chemical vs. natural nitrates – which we think is great.  But we would rather just avoid the issue all together, and we have been for over 30 years now with our fresh pork and chicken sausages.  Our all-natural chicken and pork sausages are made from fresh, whole cuts of meat, ready for you to cook and incorporate in your family’s favorite dishes.  No chemicals, no preservatives, and no nitrates or nitrites whatsoever to worry about.  Pretty simple!  We don’t have the need for nitrates in our products, and yes sometimes cooking a fresh or raw sausage like ours takes a few extra minutes, but we think the end result is well worth it.  (Hint:  if you need help in the kitchen, Frank has a video showing you how to cook fresh sausage perfectly every time!)

Tell us what you think:  Do you try to avoid nitrates in your diet?  Do you find the labeling of “natural nitrates” to be confusing?

The 4^th of July is just around the corner.  What are your grilling plans for the weekend?   We hope it will include some Isernio’s sausage!  (don’t forget to check our website for tons of sausage grilling recipes).   

Really it’s all about the fire and the meat, but grilling can be a lot more fun (and easier) with some useful tools.  Here are some of our favorites:

Digital Thermometer

The best way to ensure your meat is grilled to juicy perfection and not overdone is to use a good quality digital thermometer.  We love the Super Fast Thermapen from Thermaworks.  It has large digits and gives you an accurate reading within 3 seconds.  Well worth the investment. 

(It’s always important to cook meat to the proper temperature.  The USDA website Is it Done Yet? is a great resource for the proper and safe cooking temperatures for different types of meat.)  

Chimney Charcoal Starter

If you’re grilling over coals, you need a good chimney charcoal starter to get things going.  It’s faster and easier than using lighter fluid (and safer for the environment).  Just crumple some newspaper in the bottom of the chimney, add coals on top and light the newspaper.  Fifteen minutes later you have hot coals ready to be released into the grill.

A Good Basting Brush

Whether you’re spreading your favorite barbeque sauce on a burger or a simple glaze of olive oil over some chicken sausage, a good basting brush is essential.  We like silicone brushes, as they are heat proof and clean up easily. 

Sausage Grilling Basket

This is a handy tool if you’re grilling up sausage for a crowd.  Place the sausages in the Sausage Grilling Basket over the grill, and you’ll be able to turn all six sausages at once! 

(By the way, we highly recommend pre-cooking sausage prior to grilling, and then simply browning the sausage over the grill to preserve juiciness and ensure the sausage is done all the way through.  Frank has a video on How to Properly Cook Sausage .  Follow along his instructions to pre-cook in water, then just finish them on the grill!)

Cedar Grilling Planks

If you’ve never had cedar plank salmon, you are in for a treat!  Soak these planks in water and then grill your fish – or chicken or steak – on top of one to infuse smoky deliciousness into the meat (sure, throw some sausage on there too while you’re at it!).  The planks can be found in many grocery store meat departments, or online like these at Williams Sonoma.  There are many great recipes out on the internet for cedar planked salmon, but we love this simple Cedar Plank Salmon recipe from Bobby Flay.

Grill Brush

And then, of course there’s the cleanup.  Luckily outdoor cooking leaves very few dishes to be done, but it is always a good idea to give your grill grate a scrubbing before you use it again.  There are several good grill brushes out there (and some people even swear by just using a balled up piece of aluminum foil!).  We like this Grill Wizard Grill Brush, which also received great reviews from Cook’s Illustrated Magazine.

What are your favorite grilling tools?  We’d love to hear about your must-have grilling gadgets!