Tag: sausage

Roasted Sausage And Onion Bake With Mushrooms

sausagebakeI don’t think I am a chef by any standard but my mother taught me from a very young age that cooking doesn’t have to be complicated and if you have an idea, that’s all you really need. That is why I end up eating things like this.

Costco Italian Sausage – 5 hot 5 mild
6 large white onions
2 med cans of tomato sauce – plain, everything else has sugar in it
1 box of Campbells (or whoever you like)  “stock first” stock – whatever flavour you have handy
Italian seasoning, kosher salt, black pepper, minced garlic

Brown the sausage, chop the onions and throw everything in a baking pot (a deep pan specifically for stewing or roasting)

Bake at 350 for up t0 2 hours depending on how long your onions take to cook. Slice them thinner if you want them to cook faster. First hour you can leave it covered to make sure the liquid cooks the veg, after that open it up to thicken the sauce.

About 30 minutes from the end, throw in some sliced mushrooms and you have an amazing low sodium, zero sugar high protein dinner.

R8D3&4 – Rude Awakening Crossfit Style

I did a light leg workout with the kids at gym, it was supposed to be a rest but that’s OK. I am glad I did because yesterday my wife surprised me with a trip to an actual Crossfit Box to do one of the WODs.

It looked easy enough.

Strength Workout:
4×5 strict presswith chest to bar pullups
4×5 push press with chest to bar pullups

Metcon:
30-20-10 for time

Overhead kettlebell swing
Dumbbell push press
Walking lunges with bumper plate overhead

Looks were deceiving. It was a killer workout.  I made it through the 30 set without a lot of problem other than my heart rate being frighteningly high (107bpm) but by the time I did the push press with dumbbells the second time for 20 I had to stop part way through in order to get enough energy to finish. Then when I tried to keep my arms straight with the bumper plate overhead for some reason my arms wouldn’t go straight.

The third round, although it was only 1o was the worst. My arms were fried, my shoulders were gone and I felt a strain in my hip flexor that was becoming more and more painful. I made all 10 kb swings and 9 db press. The last one I had to repeat 3 times. The final walk was sheer agony but I made it through in a pedestrian 11:30.

I admit, it was a rude awakening to the reality of crossfit as compared to my “interpretations” of crossfit that I do at home.

It was, in a word, awesome.

Then…. When I thought the night couldn’t get any better, I was sent by my wonderful wife to the Healthy Butcher in Toronto for a sausage making class. Now I love sausage and I would like nothing better than to make my own but I never imagined I would get the chance.

Last night, I did. I made sausage with fennel, white wine, dijon mustard, cheddar, caramelized onions, allspice and a 75/25 pork beef mix with a coarse grind. I have to say it was amazing, not just the sausage itself but meeting with about 12 others who also were keen sausagistas and learning a new skill in the process. It was a brilliant evening and I even ended up with a bag of sausages!