seagrass_gw Cape Cod

Is the sausage in casings? One of my favorite ways to cook Italian sausages is a sheet pan/tray bake. I cut the sausages into chunks (I use kitchen shears), and cut similar sized chunks of onions, green and red bell pepper, and unpeeled russet potatoes. Drizzle lightly with olive oil, and mix all together on a sheet pan. Roast at 375°F for about 45 minutes, stirring about half-way through - timing will depend on volume of ingredients. Leftovers are good in a fritatta served with warm marinara on the side.

Agreed with Seagrass. I've also done the same on a bed of spinach.

If it's cooked/crumbled, good in an omelette or scramble. In a crusty roll, hollowed out a bit, with any leafy greens, cooked beans like garbanzos or canellini, cheese, peppers, and pickled or fresh sliced vegetables, or sliced onion.

Albondigas soup! The heat of the sausage will be great in this Mexican soup. Here’s a this-is-the-general-idea basic recipe that looks ok although as written it will be very bland. (It’s not a great recipe, I just got tired of looking for a good one.)

https://www.mexicoinmykitchen.com/mexican-meatball-soup-recipe/#recipe

To this recipe I would add minced cilantro, red pepper flakes, and about 3X the garlic to the meatballs, and would make the meatballs small and brown them in a pan before adding to the soup. You can sub scallion, parsley, kale, cabbage, even spinach for the cilantro if you don’t like that herb. I would add small diced carrot to the soup, use 2X as much cilantro, plus red pepper flakes, tomato paste, minced chiles (not too hot, no seeds) if available. The soup should be a little spicy, some heat, fairly hearty. Simmering the meatballs in the soup for quite a while (1 hr?) will make it tasty.

I've made Sausages & Plums with my semi dehydrated Italian plums many times and it is very good. Seems/looks a little weird first time you make it, but you get over that very quickly. I use Molly Stevens recipe. This is the same other than it ups the lb of sausages from 1.5-2 to 3.

Sausage and Italian Prune Plums Braised in Wine with Polenta Recipe on Food52

I know you want an alternative to pasta but I had to post this recipe. This is one of my very favorite Ina recipes using Italian sausage and fennel:

Rigatoni wth Sausage and Fennel

Very good baked with cannelini beans, canned tomatoes and mozzarella.

There are only 3 things I do with Italian sausage. Pasta, Pizza and Stuffed Mushrooms.

I also use sausage like seagrass and in my 'stuffed pepper soup' and Portuguese soup with white beans & kale.

Sausage, pepper and onion strombolis are pretty good.

I make Joe's Special with it, preferring the flavor of the sausage over that of ground beef. One of my favorite go-to easy meals.

https://cookingdude.com/food/eggs-cheese/joes-eggs-joes-special/

I use it as the meat in spaghetti Bolognese and in Pasta alla Buttera and Pasta alla Zozzona.

If they’re in casings this is very tasty (another one from Ina). Easy to decrease amounts, as needed. The wine can be optional or sub with chicken stock.

Roasted Sausage With Grapes

1 1/2 pounds Italian hot sausage
1 1/2 pounds Italian sweet sausage
3 T. butter
2 pounds red and/or green seedless grapes, stems removed
2 to 4 T. dry red wine
3 T. balsamic vinegar

Preheat the oven to 500 (I use 450…same amount of time).

Parboil the sausages in water to cover for 8 minutes to rid them of excess fat.

Melt the butter in a large heatproof roasting pan, add the grapes, and toss to coat. Over moderately high heat add the wine. Stir with a wooden spoon for a few minutes until the wine has reduced by half.

Using tongs, transfer the parboiled sausages to the roasting pan and push them down in the grapes so the sausages will not brown too quickly. Roast in the oven, turning the sausages once, until the grapes are soft and the sausages have browned, 20 to 25 minutes.

Place the roasting pan on top of the stove over a medium-high heat and add the balsamic vinegar. Scrape up any browned bits on the bottom of the roasting pan, and allow the vinegar and juices to reduce until they are thick and syrupy. With a slotted spoon, transfer the sausages and grapes to a serving platter.

Pour the sauce over the sausages and grapes and serve immediately.

Home made pizza is wonderful, you could chop the sausage into smaller pieces and use it as a topping.

I meant to say I was avoiding pasta because I'm trying to avoid carbs. I just don't think it's possible. All of these recipes sounds so freaking delicious!

Some of the sausage is in casings and some is not. I appreciate all the comments.

Maybe try some of the pasta dishes with zoodles or cauli rice for a lower carb option? I really like the hearts of palm pasta that I get at Trader Joes.

Oh! I thought you were just tired of pasta. Renewed recommendation for eggs…

For lower fat, as well, the sausage pairs well with mushrooms and soft greens like spinach, arugula or, even chard. You could make a nice salad of (stir) fry-up. Add bell pepper and onion or scallion. A little seasoning, a dash of EVOO, a splash of red wine vinegar. The sausage should be sufficient not to need a lot of dressing,

I buy my Italian sausage in casings, but it's easy enough to take the casings off.

Angel hair Miracle Noodles (shirataki) are a passable pasta substitute

15 bean soup! Lots of fiber to counter the carbs!

This week it's been pretty chilly 🥶 We made a cabbage and Italian sausage soup! Delicious and warmed us up.

I used part of it for a cabbage and beef soup I had that needed some sort of adjustment. It was the perfect adjustment, and no carbs were added.

I have a feeling I'm going to give up and use the other sausage for a vodka sauce and pasta. I'd like to "not to". So I'm sure I'll be back over here to find another suggestion and try it too! Y'all always have great ideas. I'm bookmarking this ☺️

Resistant Starch 101 — Everything You Need to Know

IDK if I posted this right, but we've been using this as well as using Lavasche flat bread and lower carb breads. Haven't found a pasta yet that we like. Looking into Carb Deim.

Not pasta, but I recently found a high fiber bread that uses resistant starch. It's really squishy, and in many ways not bread-like, but it tastes good, and it's fine for sandwiches. preservatives, though. Hero brand seeded bread.

Pasta's the big one I'm talking about. Tied with potatoes and ranking for how much I love them and I just don't lose weight when I'm eating them. Rice is a pretty distant third.

The's a ”pasta” made on similar principles, called It's Skinny, but I haven't tried it. On Amazon the reviews are fairly positive, but it does have a lot of chewy/rubbery mentions. I don't know if the same people would say that about whole wheat, or duram, or any other texture they weren't used to.

My firstmthought was pizza! we love it on pizza instead of cured mests, or even as well as. my next choice hands down is Zuppa Toscanna

I'm going to buy some zoodles tomorrow. I have made a vodka sauce with the Italian sausage. I just couldn't say no. But maybe I can get rid of the flour carb which just sticks to my bones. And not in a good way!

I appreciate all the answers. And I'm filing them away

Miracle noodles are much better than zoodles for a pasta sub: https://miraclenoodle.com/

I add Italian sausage to grits, along with red bell pepper, celery, garlic, egg, and cheese, plus Cajun spices. I cook the grits in chicken broth and spices and then bake it like a casserole with the rest of the ingredients. I also add frozen corn kernels.

Here is a link to a recipe that I like a lot.

Italian Sausage with farfalle and butternut squash

While it calls for spicy sausage, I often use the mild, and it is very good.

I've also made it eliminateng the farfalle, and not substituting it with anything at all. I think it would also be good substituing kale for the farfalle. I'm going to try that the next time I have butternut squash on hand. The possibilities for this recipe seem endless, with a little imagination. Maybe a soup even?

Rusty

Lots of other good-looking recipes in that link. I think I would like the Whole Wheat Spaghetti with Sausage and Peppers. However, I would cut the sausage into much smaller slices than 1/2" thick. I normally slice them 1/8" thick, and sometimes I cut them in half lengthwise before slicing them.

Have you tried the frozen cauliflower rice? It is low carb, Keto friendly and makes a great base for a meal. I would saute onion, garlic, bell pepper and mushroom. Brown the Italian sausage and then add the cauliflower rice and season to your taste. Maybe just a splash of Worcestershire sauce, salt & pepper.`