Tuscan Sausage Spinach And Cannellini Beans Recipes

CANNELLINI BEANS AND ITALIAN SAUSAGE

Steps:

• Place the beans in a large bowl with water, using your hand swirl the beans around to rinse them and discard any small stones or beans that look brown. Drain the beans in a colander, rinse and refill the bowl with beans and a generous amount of water (at least 2-3 inches above the beans) and let soak overnight or for at least 6 hours.
• Drain the beans, rinse well and place in a Dutch oven or large pot. Add 7 cups water, 5 of the sage leaves, the tomato halves and bring to a boil uncovered over med-high heat. Reduce heat to a gentle simmer and cook uncovered until the beans are tender 1 1/2 - 2 hours, be sure to test for doneness. Drain and reserve the beans, discard the sage and tomato halves.
• In a large sauce pan, heat oil over medium heat. Add garlic, 5 remaining sage leaves, onions, carrots, celery, red pepper flakes and saute for 8-10 minutes until the ingredients are soft and translucent. Stir in the cooked beans and crushed tomatoes. Add the salt, pepper and the chicken stock. Stir together and simmer gently, when all ingredients are combined and warmed, stir in the mascarpone cheese until melted and evenly folded into the tomato and bean mixture. Add salt and pepper to taste. Cover saucepan to keep warm and turn off heat until ready to serve.
• Cook the sausage by braising or grilling. Once the sausages are cooked, transfer them to a cutting board and cut into halves or thirds. Transfer the warm beans to individual bowls and arrange sausage pieces on top. Garnish with a sprig of fresh sage.
• * To Serve 4-5, prepare the same recipe with 1 package of Johnsonville Italian sausage.
• * mascarpone cheese is a mild flavored, creamy Italian cheese and can be found in the specialty cheese section of most grocery stores.

TUSCAN SAUSAGE, SPINACH AND CANNELLINI BEANS

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
• Brown sausages in oil till done, drain and slice into rounds.
• In large bowl, combine sausage, spinach, beans, onion, cream, 1/4 cup of the Parmesan cheese, lemon peel and juice, nutmeg, and salt and pepper.
• Turn mixture into a greased 2 qt casserole.
• In small bowl, mix bread crumbs, remaining 1/4 cup cheese, garlic and melted butter.
• Sprinkle on top of casserole.
• Bake uncovered 35 minutes, or until heated through.

SAUSAGE & CANNELLINI BEAN SOUP

Steps:

• Cook the sausage and onion in a large saucepan over medium heat until meat is no longer pink; drain. Add garlic; cook 1 minute longer., Stir in the beans, broth, water, wine and pepper. Bring to a boil. Add escarole; heat through. Sprinkle with cheese.

ITALIAN SAUSAGE BEAN AND SPINACH SOUP

Steps:

• Heat olive oil in a 8-10-quart pot over medium-high heat.
• Add in the sausage meat; cook until browned (about 8-10 minutes) remove the meat to a plate or bowl.
• Add in the onion, carrots, basil and dried chili flakes; saute for about 5-6 minutes adding in the garlic the last couple minutes.
• Add in chicken broth, tomatoes with juice and drained beans; bring to a boil, cover with lid and cook at medium-low for about 30 minutes.
• Add in pasta shells; reduce heat and simmer until the pasta is firm-tender (about 10 minutes, stirring occasionally.
• Skim any fat that has accumulated on top of the soup, then stir in about 1/4 cup grated parmesan cheese and the fresh spinach; cook until the spinach is just wilted (about 1-2 minutes).
• Season with salt and pepper.
• Pass more Parmesan cheese at the table.

TUSCAN SAUSAGE & BEAN DIP

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 375°. In a large skillet, cook sausage, onion and garlic over medium heat until sausage is no longer pink, breaking up sausage into crumbles; drain. Stir in wine, oregano, salt and thyme. Bring to a boil; cook until liquid is almost evaporated., Add cream cheese; stir until melted. Stir in spinach, beans and tomatoes; cook and stir until spinach is wilted. Transfer to a greased 8-in. square baking dish; if using an ovenproof skillet, leave in skillet. Sprinkle with cheeses., Bake until bubbly, 20-25 minutes. Serve with crackers.