Tag Archives: leek

Spaghetti Squash, Leek, Sausage, and Egg Bake

14 Aug

Yes, I really just put all those ingredients together in a sentence!  A little over a month ago, remember how excited I was to have a new favorite, Summer Squash, Sausage, and Egg Bake?  I’ve made it a few times since then, using just zucchini, and my family loves it so much, there are never any leftovers.  Well, my FarmBox has been offering spaghetti squash, which we love, and I wanted to try something new with it.  This worked perfectly.  Instead of sauteing zucchini and yellow squash, I roasted the spaghetti squash in the oven, then added it to the browned sausage and leeks.  Yes, leeks.  We have been buying leeks at the Farmer’s Market, and are tired of Potato Leek Soup, so I used one in this casserole.  Fabulous!  Unfortunately, I don’t have a picture of this one, we ate it as soon as it was ready, so you will have to use your imaginations.  But, I promise, it is fabulous!

Spaghetti Squash, Leek, Sausage, and Egg Bake

What you need:

1 pound sausage, Italian sausage or breakfast sausage
1 small leek, sliced as done here
1 medium size spaghetti squash
3 large eggs, well beaten
1 cup shredded mozzarella cheese
1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese

How to make it:

Preheat oven to 400 F.

Line a baking sheet with foil and spray with olive oil or non-stick cooking spray.  Cut spaghetti squash in half, and scoop out the seeds and innards.  Place the cut side down on the baking sheet.  Bake in the preheated oven for 30-35 minutes, or until soft.  Allow to cool for 10 minutes, then use a fork to pull the flesh away from the peel.  Pictures on how this is done are here.

Meanwhile, in a large skillet, brown sausage.  Do not drain fat.  Add leeks, and cook until soft and translucent.  Stir in the cooked spaghetti squash and remove from heat.

Meanwhile, in a small bowl, mix together eggs, mozzarella cheese, and Parmesan cheese.

Spray a 2 quart casserole dish with non-stick cooking spray.  Pour the squash/sausage mixture into the dish.  Mix in the egg and cheese mixture.

Bake in the preheated oven for 25-30 minutes, or until sides are bubbling and a knife inserted in the center comes out clean.

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Variations on Potato Leek Soup

2 Mar

After ending up with plenty of leeks and gold potatoes after Bountiful Baskets last week, we’ve been enjoying plenty of Potato Leek Soup.  However, my husband complains about the lack of meat.  So, I tried a couple different variations this week, and they were great!

Potato Leek Soup with Sausage:  While soup is cooking, crumble and brown 1 pound of Italian sausage.  Drain excess fat.  Stir into finished soup.

Potato Leek Soup with Sausage

 

Potato Leek Soup with Ham: After soup has finished cooking, add in 2 cups of fully cooked ham (such as Zaycon Foods ham)

Potato Leek Soup with Ham

 

I will update the original post for Potato Leek Soup with these variations as well!

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Potato Leek Soup

10 Sep

I have eaten Potato Leek Soup before, but it was a store bought soup mix.  I have never actually cooked with leeks, so I was excited to see them in my Bountiful Baskets this week while most people were turning up their noses at them.  Plus, we also got gold potatoes, so Potato Leek Soup had to be made!  My husband was really excited too, and he really enjoyed the soup.  It also worked out that Saturday was an overcast, rainy, cooler day, great soup weather.  And, it was coupled perfectly with the baguettes I had gotten from my Sunizona Family Farms FarmBox.  Can you tell how excited I am about how well this meal came together?!?!

Potato Leek Soup
Based on recipes here and here

What you need:

1/2 cup butter
2 leeks, white and pale green parts only, chopped (There is a great video here on how to clean and chop the leeks, thank you Kelly H. for the link!)
1 tablespoon cornstarch
4 cups chicken or vegetable broth (make sure to use gluten-free broth if you need this gluten-free)
2 1/2 lbs potatoes, preferably Yukon gold, diced
2 cups half and half or whole milk
1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley
Salt and pepper

How to make it:

Melt butter in a large stock pot and add chopped leeks, plus salt and pepper to taste.  Cook leeks in the butter until tender, about 10-15 minutes.  Do not let leeks brown, brown will give them a burnt taste.

Next, wisk the cornstarch into the chicken broth, leaving no lumps.  Pour into the stock pot.  Then, add the diced potatoes and half and half.  Bring to a boil, then reduce heat to low and simmer for 20-30 minutes, until potatoes are tender.  Stir in the parsley and more salt and pepper, if desired.  If you want a smoother soup, remove about half of soup to a blender and puree, then return to the pot.  You can also use an immersion blender or hand potato masher to slightly mash some of the potatoes in the soup.  Serve hot.

Variations:

Potato Leek Soup with Sausage:  While soup is cooking, crumble and brown 1 pound of Italian sausage.  Drain excess fat.  Stir into finished soup.

Potato Leek Soup with Ham: After soup has finished cooking, add in 2 cups of fully cooked ham (such as Zaycon Foods ham)

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