Sausage, Fennel, and Chili Pasta

I love an interesting pasta dish. I'm not an overly big fan of tomato sauce, or maybe I'm just tired of it. I like it when it is not overly "saucy", which is opposite to how SO likes it. Anyway. This dish started when some friends came over and brought some fresh hot chilies from their garden. Yea!  The perfect way to spice up a dish.

Sausage, Fennel, and Chili Pasta

There are quite a few recipes out there that mix sausage and fennel, I wanted to try that. Plus any excuse to use a kitchen gadget....in this case, the mortar and pestle. So will just add the chilies, and for good measure some fresh herbs like parsley and green onions. And pickle, it needs pickle.

Some of the fresh ingredients

Grinding up the chilies and fennel worked out much better than I anticipated. Apart from watering eyes, it worked really well with the browned sausage.I didn't taste the pickle much honestly, not sure if there just wasn't enough or if it was a dumb idea. Will try more next time.

Next Time: either more pickle, or eliminate it.

Me: 9/10
SO: 6/10 (a bit too spicy)
SSO: n/a

Quick Fennel salad

There's nothing particularly inventive or special about this salad. It is, however, a nice change from the usual lettuce with veggie blah or even fruit/cheese blah. I don't buy Fennel every day, it is a pretty strong flavour and so must be used with purpose. Usually I would combine it with orange and red onion. This time I had neither, so it was time to improvise with what was left in the fridge. That turned out to be green grapes and a few old strawberries.

Fennel and grape salad

So I pulled out the mandolin, mostly because I like to use it more than because I really needed it. Although, with fennel the thin pieces are better than thicker big pieces. Cut the green grapes in half, diced the strawberries, and finally tossed with a generous splash of sherry vinegar, the juice from half a lime, and a sprinkle of sugar.

Next time: would experiment with different fruits

Me: 8/10
SO: 5/10 (she thought the fennel was past its prime, I thought it was still ok)
SSO: 4/10

Lemon Chicken Drumsticks with Fennel Slaw and Roasted Lemon Potatoes

Lemon  is definitely the theme of the meal this time. Unlike my other posted roasted chicken recipe however, this is a tad less "hit you over the head" lemony. It has lemon juice and zest, but that's it - no lemon slices in the oven.  The chicken part of the meal was adapted from a recipe calling it "Mediterranean Chicken", but I think that is not right at all (just because it has oregano and garlic?). Sheesh.

The Fennel Slaw is an idea from Chef Michael Smith. Wasn't the family's fav in the end, but I liked it. Any excuse to get the mandolin out.  But not just that, it is so fresh tasting and fennel isn't your everyday veg. As for the potatoes, well we roast potatoes probably once a week - but in different styles. Instead of the usual "throw on some kind of spice mix", we tossed the potato wedges in the remains of a bottle of Farm Boy lemon-garlic salad dressing. These dressings are pretty awesome. Checking the label, there is no added sugar or weird preservatives - just lemon, garlic, oil, salt & pepper.

Lemon Chicken Drumsticks with Fennel Slaw and Roasted Lemon Potatoes.
I almost forgot to take a photo before I ate it all, hence the tiny amount of everything on the plate.

This turned out to be perfect for a Sunday family meal. Was really super easy, very little muss and fuss.  Preparing the slaw ahead of time is actually better, the flavours marinate better. And plus, the chicken and potatoes can go in the oven at the same time at the same temp.

Next Time: would maybe try a bit longer at a bit lower temp

Me: 8/10
SO: 7/10
SSO: 4/10