Roasted Sausage and Summer Vegetables

I love fresh summer vegetables.  I don't grow them myself, but my local grocery store does a good job of stocking locally grown produce this time of year.  I always try to be sure to incorporate some into my menu.  I especially love the summer zucchini and squash.  There are several recipes similar to this one floating around.  I made this one similar to how I like to roast my vegetables in my other recipes.  It turned out really well.  I debated on how much oil to use.  This time I used ¹/₃ cup.  I think I may try reducing that to ¼ cup the next time I make it.  That may depend on your own taste.  This recipe is a good, quick recipe that we all need during the busy back to school season!

Roasted Sausage and Summer Vegetables

2 13 oz packages of turkey kielbasa, sliced*

2 medium zucchini, quartered and sliced

2 medium yellow squash, quartered and sliced

1 sweet onion, cubed

1 orange bell pepper, cubed

6 cloves of garlic, minced

2 t seasoned salt*

1 t pepper

1 t Italian blend seasoning

¼ - ¹/₃ c extra virgin olive oil

Preheat oven to 425^o.  After slicing and chopping, place sausage and vegetables in a large bowl.  Sprinkle with garlic and spices.  Drizzle with oil.  With a large spoon, gently mix until oil and spices are evenly coated.  Line two large rimmed baking sheets with parchment paper.  Spread sausage and vegetable mixture evenly on pans.  Place both pans in preheated oven.  (The pans can be placed on two different oven racks.)  Bake for about 30-45 minutes.  While cooking, stirring once or twice and rotate pans to roast evenly.  Serve with your favorite couscous*, quinoa or rice.

*These items could contain gluten.  If you have a gluten allergy, check the labels carefully or use a safe substitute.  

Mexican Zucchini

Do you need a quick meal on a busy school night before you race off for your kids' activities?  Try this one!  It is pretty healthy, too.  I liked it as is, but I also served it over seasoned Spanish rice.

Mexican Zucchini and Beef - click to link to recipe.

Zucchini and Corn

This is the side dish I made to go with the Mexican Picadillo from my last post.  I thought it was really good together and I will for sure be making both recipes again.  I also like that this recipe uses fresh summer produce!

Zucchini & Corn - Click to link to recipe.  To make dairy-free, simply omit the Parmesan cheese.

Shepard's Pie

Shepard's pie is such a comfort food for me.  My mom made it growing up.  I found this recipe on Pinterest.  It is suppose to be a copycat of the recipe they use at the Cheesecake Factory.  I have eaten this at the Cheesecake Factory.  They are both really good but I am not sure how close this recipe comes to the restaurant version.  I really, really liked this recipe.  It was just what I need on a cold dreary day!!  Mmmm.

This recipe took longer to make than described.  So, by the time I got it put together and in the oven, dinner was a little late.  We were starved!  So, I totally forgot to take a picture until we had already eaten half!  This is not the greatest picture and does not do it justice.  Click on the link to see a much better picture and the recipe.  But this recipe is worth the time it takes to make it.  So good!  I think next time I will try to make it much earlier and refrigerate it until closer to dinner time.

Copycat Cheesecake Factory's Shepard Pie - click to link to recipe.

Recipe notes:  I obviously omitted the egg wash at the end of the recipe.  It cooks up just fine without it.
With a little more effort, I also think this recipe could be made gluten free.  To make it gluten-free, I would recommend making sure you have a gluten-free tomato paste, Worcestershire sauce and beef broth.  I would also substituting corn starch in place of the flour.  You likely won't need as much corn starch.  Try two teaspoons but be sure to dissolve in a little water before adding it in.

Zucchini Parmesan Crisps

I found this recipe on Pinterest, of course.  I made these while my husband grilled steaks on the grill this weekend.  So good! 

Zucchini Parmesan Crisps - Click to link to recipe. 

Note:  In the link it appears that she cooked them on parchment paper but doesn't mention it in the recipe.  That is what I used and I think it works better than foil for zucchini. 

Roasted Vegetable Medley

Here is the Roasted Vegetable Medley as promised.  I also want to try them grilled as suggested by the recipe that I adapted this one from.  Check it out at the link below.

Roasted Vegetable Medley

Adapted from Easy Grilled Vegetables by Gimme Some Oven

1 zucchini, quartered and thickly sliced

1 yellow squash, quartered and thickly sliced

8 oz mushrooms, quartered

1 lb grape tomatoes, whole

1 yellow onion, cut in half then each half in quarters

2 T olive oil

6-8 cloves garlic, minced

black pepper and seasoned salt, to taste

Preheat oven to 425^o.

In a 11x14 baking dish, add vegetables and mix to evenly distribute.  Then drizzle with olive oil.  Sprinkle mixture with garlic, seasoned salt and pepper.   Stir again. Then roasted in oven, stirring every 10 minutes until cooked to desired texture.  

Pesto Pasta with Roasted Veggies

My sister-in-law made this wonderful dish for us when we were visiting, recently.  A friend had made it for them.  So, I am not sure who to give credit for the original recipe.  But here I did document the qualities and cooking methods that worked for me when I prepared it.  In my next post, I will share an easy way to have cooked chicken ready just in time for to use in this recipe and others.  

When I made this recipe, as pictured below, I used one zucchini, one squash and one pepper.  I think next time, I will use two zucchini and two squash.  I also may try it with grilled chicken and maybe even grilled veggies.  Yum!  I also think this would be great served chilled for a picnic!  So many possibilities...

If you like this recipe, you may like Chicken Pesto Pasta (EF, GF).

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Pesto Pasta with Roasted Veggies  

2 lbs chicken, cooked and cubed

1-2 yellow squash, sliced

1-2 zucchini, sliced

1 bell pepper, sliced and halved (I used orange)

1-2 T olive oil

½ t seasoned salt 

½ t freshly ground black pepper

1 c pesto (I used Classico Basil Pesto)

1 16 oz box pasta (I used bow tie)

Grated Parmesan Cheese, for topping (optional)

Preheat oven to 425^o.  Spread veggies in a single layer on rimmed baking sheet(s) covered with foil.  Drizzle with oil and sprinkle with salt and pepper.  Mix to coat.  Cook in preheated oven for 10 minutes.  Stir.  Cook for an additional 10 minutes.  Stir once more.  Then cook for 5 more minutes or until desired tenderness. 

Meanwhile cook pasta according to package instructions.  Once pasta is cooked and drained, stir in pesto until evenly coats pasta.  Toss in chicken and roasted veggies.  Sprinkle with additional Parmesan cheese, if using.  Serves 8

Gluten-free notes:  This dish can easily be made gluten-free.  Just replace the pasta with your favorite gluten-free variety.  According to the Heinz website (Heinz owns Classico), Classico Basil Pesto sold in the United States is gluten-free!

Dairy-free notes:  This dish can also easily be made dairy-free.  Just be sure to use a dairy-free pesto and omit the parmesan cheese.  The Classico brand I used, is not dairy-free.