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The Ultimate Sausage Pasta

“This is the best pasta I’ve ever had” - Everyone who’s tried it

Living with other people is a valuable experience for any young person - especially when you get the chance to share meals and recipes. It’s amazing what kinds of foods you can add to your cooking arsenal and this pasta is one of them!

Originally introduced through the friend of my housemate, I can say with absolute confidence that this is the best pasta I, and everyone who's tried it, has ever had. The best part? It only takes half an hour to make!

With it’s quick cooking time on consistent heat, easy steps, and simple ingredients, it makes for the perfect meal for everyone from an on-the-go student looking for a cheap, filling meal to a busy professional.

VEGETARIAN? No problem! Check the results sections for tips on changes to make the recipe work for you.

Prep: 5 mins                     Cook: 25 mins                       Overall: 30 mins

For the ingredients:

Half a bag (450 g) Rigatoni pasta

500g mild italian sausage, sliced into 3/4-inch pieces (I recommend Johnsonville brand, if available)

4 large cloves garlic, finely chopped

2 tbsp. sundried tomatoes in oil, sliced

2 tbsp. oil from the jar

1 cup (250 ml) low-sodium chicken broth*

1 block (150 g) chopped frozen spinach**

½ cup (125 ml) heavy cream (35%)***

* Feel free to use any homemade chicken broth or stock you have for a deeper flavour! If you store your homemade broth in the freezer using ice-cubes, you’ll need about 8 for a cup.

** If you’ve got the chopped frozen spinach that comes in little cylinders it’s about 3 of them. If you only have frozen whole leaf spinach (like I did here), take it out of the package and stick it in the microwave on a plate until it starts to defrost. Then, chop it up!

*** Feel free to use either 35% “cooking cream” or “heavy cream”. I’ve used both and haven’t noticed a difference. Do not use lighter creams as substitutes. You will end up with a cream soup instead of a cohesive sauce.

Start by boiling your pasta according to the directions listed on the package - straining it about 1 minute before it reaches al dente.

Next, heat up a high-rimmed skillet on medium heat and add your sausage. Allow it to fully cook through, about 12 minutes (internal temp of 160℉), stirring occasionally.

After the sausage has fully cooked, add the garlic, sundried tomatoes, and oil. Mix it with the sausage and cook until the garlic starts to turn a golden colour (2-3 minutes), stirring frequently.

TIP: After finely chopping your garlic, use the flat side of the knife to crush it. This will allow more flavour to release from the garlic.

Add the chicken broth and scrape the bottom of the pan to loosen any bits that got stuck. Allow the broth to come to a boil.

Add the frozen spinach to the boiling broth, breaking it up as it thaws. Allow it to cook until no frozen chunks remain, about 3-4 minutes.

NOTE: At this stage, you’ll probably start to think that there’s too little sauce in the pan, but resist the urge to add extra broth.

Add the heavy cream and stir. Allow it to come to a boil and incorporate, stirring frequently, for 2 minutes.

You might need to add a little more cream as it cooks. Ideally, you want the sauce to have taken on the lighter colour of the cream but still be able to see the darker colour of the broth.

NOTE: This was made with homemade chicken stock - giving it a deeper colour when the cream is mixed in. You’ll find your sauce to be much lighter if using store-bought broth.

Finally, keeping the heat on medium, add your strained past. Stir until you can see the sauce clinging to the noodles and making them shiny, about 2 minutes. There should only be a little sauce remaining at the bottom of the pan.

Overall, I would give this pasta a 5/5. I’ve honestly never made a recipe that everyone unanimously agrees is a hit with no changes. It’s so quick and easy that I make it almost every week without fail. In fact, I'm making it tomorrow!

As I’ve mentioned in the introduction, I would highly recommend this to anyone who is just starting to learn how to cook. The entire meal cooks in 30 mins on the same heat and is extremely forgiving. Perfect for those starting to venture past instant noodles and freezer meals!

EATING VEGETARIAN? No problem!: I’ve made this dish vegetarian several times and although you do lose some of the flavour, it’s still amazing. 

To substitute the sausage, I’ve either taken it out completely or I’ve used Beyond Meat sausage. Personally, I would recommend leaving the BM sausage out as it has a strange texture. If you enjoy BM and want to add it, add 2 tbsp. of neutral oil to the pan while heating it. Add the sausage and cook for 8 minutes, stirring frequently.

You can substitute the chicken broth with vegetable broth. I would also recommend adding ~1 tsp. italian seasoning with the broth (like the one used in the dwarven flatbread, but maybe skip the marjoram). This should make up for the loss of spicing from the sausage.

This collab was not on my 2023 bingo card

(source)

Earl Grey Cookies

“[...] a combination of shortbread and jam thumbprint cookies, made all the more interesting by the addition of tea - something different for a cookie exchange, or package them with a fancy cup and extra tea as a gift.” - ~mystery book~, p. 227

Sugar cookies are a staple of the holiday season. Whether decorated with frosting, cut into festive shapes, or sprinkled with powdered sugar, they are the go-to cookie for gifting!

When I first decided to try this version of sugar cookie, I wasn’t sure what to expect. But, I figured I’d give them a shot since it uses my favourite tea. In the end? Best. Decision. EVER! I’ve made them for myself and friends in past holiday seasons and I constantly get asked for the recipe and/or when I’ll be making more (the answer is always December, guys).

Like the Soul Cakes marking the overlap of four different holidays at the end of October, these cookies offer a twist on the traditional treats served this time of year.

Consider baking them with the Cranberry Banana Muffins to really spice up the holiday season!

EDIT: Now with extra tips!

(This recipe is an adaptation from a cookbook my grandmother has tucked away. However, I don’t have the title of the book and I can’t find her copy anymore so it’s of ~mystery origin~.)

Prep: 5 mins               Cook: 45 mins               Total: 50 mins

Ingredients*:

1 cup (227 g) butter, softened

⅔ cup (138 g) granulated sugar

1 egg

1 tsp. (5 mL) vanilla extractñ

2 ½ cups (313 g) all-purpose flour

1 tbsp. (6 g) Earl Grey tea leaves

¼ tsp. (0.5 g) kosher salt

½ cup (320 g) apricot jam or marmalade**

*Makes enough for about 3 dozen cookies.

** Be careful when selecting your brand of jam (both for these cookies and in general). Ingredients on labels are listed from greatest amount to least - so try to pick one that has apricots as the first ingredient instead of sugar!

First, preheat the oven to convection bake at 325℉ (160℃) [or 350℉ (177℃) if using a conventional oven].

Then, in a large bowl, cream together the butter and sugar until light (top-left).

Beat in the egg and vanilla (top-right).

In a separate bowl, whisk together the flour, tea, and salt.

Add the flour mixture to the butter mixture and stir until just combined.

Roll the cookies into 1 tbsp. (about 1-inch or 2.5 cm) balls and place them on two large, parchment-lined baking sheets.

TIP: To get all of the cookies a uniform size, I level off a 1 tbsp. measuring spoon with dough, then roll them.

Dip the end of a wooden spoon about ⅜ th of an inch (1 cm) in diameter into flour and make indentations in the center of each cookie.

Fill each indentation with a generous ¼ tsp. of jam or marmalade.

Convection bake in the oven for 16 - 18 minutes [or the same amount of time, rotating the pan halfway through, if using a conventional oven], or until they start to turn a light golden.

Remove from oven and let cool on wire racks.

Overall, I would give these cookies a 5/5. The mild sweetness from the earl grey mixed with the sweetness of the jam produces such a unique flavour without being overwhelming. Not to mention that snacking on them creates this holiday/Christmas-y vibe that’s hard to describe.

As mentioned in the intro, I’ve made these for my friends in the past and they’re a massive hit. Because they look so different from traditional holiday sugar cookies but fit so well with the season, they become a really unique treat to give to friends and family!

LAST CHANCE TO VOTE before the poll closes for the unofficial 2021 Heroes’ Feast Gingerbread Showcase ft. myself, @afinickyguide​ , Luboffin_ , and Samantha Nahra!!

VOTE: https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/LHFG8PD

Homely Halfling House (Gringerbread)

“A traditional treat served in the waning light of the month of Sunsebb in Greyhawk, this style of gingerbread man memorializes a legend about the ancient ruins of Castle Greyhawk.”- Heroes’ Feast, p. 43

Here’s my entry for the unofficial 2021 Heroes’ Feast Gingerbread Showcase that I’m participating in with:

@afinickyguide

Samantha Nahra

Luboffin_ (Luna)

Check out their gingerbread houses and use this Survey Monkey link to vote for your favourite! : https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/LHFG8PD

As the chilly winds descend on Fearûn, there’s nothing more comforting to a halfling than cozying up in their house by the fireplace with their favourite book and a steaming cup of cocoa broth.

So, as we all settle in for the winter months ahead, bring some cozy warmth and joy to your holiday season and create your own halfling house!

Spiced without being overbearing, these cookies are a great dessert to serve with coffee or hot chocolate, or pack them in a cookie bundle with some Earl Grey cookies and Banana-Cranberry muffins!

Remember to vote for your favourite house using the Survey Monkey link!

Check out below for my process in creating the house and for some helpful tips and tricks when making this yourself! Get Heroes’ Feast here: https://dnd.wizards.com/heroes-feast

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I was making spaghetti and I woke up mid-cooking and set an alarm for when the pasta was done.

His siblings will be able to go to college.

If they want to, of course. But that’s the thing that’s stuck with me the most. He wanted us to know that. In his last words to us, he made sure we knew that. He apologized for selling out, not that he needed to, and told us there was a reason and a result: “thanks to everyone that bought hoodies, plushies and channel memberships, my siblings are going to college”.

Technoblade changed so many lives, both of fans and creators alike. Hell, he changed my life too, he brought joy, he brought light, he brought laughter.

His legacy lives on, through us, through his friends, through the Sarcoma Research Foundation, through his colleagues.

Through his family.

His siblings can go to college.

We changed his life too. And he wanted us to know.

do NOT feel bad abt scarfing down a tub of raspberries. there is NO reason at all to ration them like other delicious treats bc they WILL mold as soon as theyre out of your line of sight

Forbidden cheese