(Chicken) Sausage and Peppers with Polenta Chips

Today was one of those days. I came home from work ready to bang heads together (and I knew exactly which two I wanted to use). All the chopping in this recipe was kind of cathartic.

Seriously though, this was super easy to make and it was really good. The husband volunteered that he thought “the flavors are really complex and for something so simple there’s a lot of depth. I give it a 9 out of 10.” When I asked him what a 10 would be, he wasn’t able to answer. I might not be quite so generous (I’d give it an 8,) but it’s more his style meal than mine. I really liked the polenta chips… they had a nice crunch on the outside, but were still nice and chewy in the middle. Again really flavorful, and much lighter than pasta or bread would have been.

I want to take a minute to give a shoutout to Bilinkski sausages here. This is our favorite brand of chicken sausages. We’ve been eating them for years, and started because they tasted the best… but we’ve since discovered they also have about a third the calories and fat that other chicken sausages have! They’re all natural (some are organic) AND local (from Cohoes, NY- just up the street)- always a plus with me. Tonight I used the Sun Dried Tomato flavor, which was delicious and went perfectly with this recipe. if you can find these near you, I highly recommend them. They have a ton of flavors, and I’ve been happy with every one that I’ve tried.

• 2 tsp olive oil
• 1/2 bulb fennel, thinly sliced
• 2 onions, sliced
• 2 red peppers, sliced
• 4 cloves garlic, thinly sliced
• Palmful dried thyme
• 1 T. tomato paste
• 2/3 c. white wine (I used sauvignon blanc)
• 1 tube polenta (I used Italian seasoned)
• 1 pkg chicken sausage

1. Preheat oven to 400. Heat 1 tsp oil in a large oven-proof skillet over medium-high heat. Add fennel and cook until soft, about 2 minutes. Add onion and cook until soft, about 4 minutes. Add peppers, garlic, and thyme. Cook another 4 minutes. Stir in wine and tomato paste. Transfer skillet to oven.

2. Start cooking sausages. I grilled mine, but a grill pan indoors would work just as well.

3. While sausages cook, heat remaining oil in a second pan. Cut polenta into thin slices (I got about 25 slices from 1 tube) and add to hot oil. Cook until crisp, turning once (about 5 minutes on each side).