Kielbasa, homemade kraut and squash

We have done a fair amount of experimenting with the various widely available sausages this outdoor cooking season.  We have discovered that even above the wildly popular bratwurst that our favorite is the kielbasa, Polish sausage.

So a couple of days ago I scored a couple of big Polish.  That day we had meat and I like to season the sausage by putting it on the grill along with the meat.  That grilled meat taste is incorporated into the sausage and then we try to take advantage of that in some later usage of the big sausage.

Which leads us to this evening's meal.  We have previously done some things with the spaghetti squash which were pretty much duplicated this evening.  Bake the squash, mix in some butter and fresh parmesan cheese and some fresh cut tomatoes and peppers.

The tomatoes and peppers don't exactly cook but the heat from the squash renders everything into a single dish.  Squash with tomatoes and some still slightly crisp peppers.

The new addition to the equation is homemade sauerkraut.

It was excellent.

The obvious question seems to me to be where does one obtain home made sauerkraut.

You make it yourself, that's how.

All of the articles I read said making your own kraut would produce a sauerkraut better than what you are used to when buying from the deli or supermarket.

Yup.

It is easy but it does require some hand work.  I expect to soon enough provide a post with details as I prepare my second batch.

Let them eat cake.....

It was that kind of day.

Many thanks to all of my friends and family who sent birthday wishes my way.  It's not as bad as I had expected.

Fresh Vegetable Medley

LH brought over some freshly picked green beans and zucchini this afternoon.  In this heat, we've been eating lighter, and I made a fresh vegetable stew for supper tonight.

I sauteed an onion with some garlic, added in a couple of small red potatoes, and started that all cooking in a little olive oil.  It needed some liquid and I didn't have any fresh tomatoes (which I think would have been good), so I poured the liquid from a can of diced tomatoes in with the vegetables,  I cubed the zucchini, cut up the green beans, decided to throw in the tomatoes after all, then added some spices.  Salt, pepper, parsley and oregano.  I had some fresh basil so I added that.  It was pretty tasty.

Cross blog

Because it is what I threatened to do.

I almost think this should go on the cooking blog.

Has anyone else seen these?

3 for a buck.  Which is pretty dang expensive for kraut, even "Quality Kraut".  But TOPWLH and the P-ster were going to go to the track today (I begged off, futbol don't ya know).  The deal at the track on the Fourth of July is free hot dogs.  The dogs are free but the condiment selection is severely lacking.  Our family tradition is to bring our own mustard (although anyone who knows me will know that I always maintain that the cheap yellow mustard is a GOOD mustard) and kraut.  Packing a tupperware container of kraut isn't THAT difficult but geez, singles?  Way, way easier.

Convenience rules.

Seafood Au Gratin

I wish we'd taken a picture of tonight's dinner, but we were too busy savoring it.  I want to preserve the recipe, though -- so I'm recording it here.  Full credit for the dish goes to North Country Woman.

It takes about 1 pound of a mix of shrimp, scallops and crab (imitation crab in this case), though any seafood would be fine.  She used pre-cooked shrimp and crab that were completely thawed, and fresh scallops.

Begin by sauteing about 1/2 cup each of mushrooms and onions in olive oil, season with garlic salt, seasoned salt and seasoned pepper, then place them in a casserole dish. (I think the quart and a half size works best.)

Next, make a white sauce with 3 Tablespoons of butter cooked for a couple of minutes (in a big skillet) with about 5 Tablespoons of flour.  Stir in about 2 1/2 cups of milk slowly, and cook the sauce until it just begins to thicken.  Add the sauce to the mushrooms and onions.  Add one generous cup of freshly shredded sharp white cheddar cheese.  Add 2 to 3 Tablespoons of Worcestershire sauce, mixing as you go along.

Next NCW lightly fried the seafood with a little olive oil, just to heat it through and shorten the baking time. What you do here depends on whether you're using fresh or pre-cooked seafood.  She was using a couple of recipes as guides, and one said to heat the seafood, the other said to add it to the white sauce mixture and it would cook during the last step.  (I probably would cook anything a little bit that wasn't pre-cooked.)  Add the seafood to the casserole.

Add 1/2 cup frozen peas, stir.

Dust the top of the mixture in the casserole with seasoned bread crumbs and paprika.  Bake at 350 degrees for 20 to 25 minutes  until it is bubbly.  Let it cool slightly before serving over puffed pastry shells. (She used frozen Pepperidge Farm shells.)  Serves 4 generously. Goes well with grilled asparagus and a fresh green salad.

Note:  JB liked this so much that he has devised a plan.  He's going to hide NCW until after TT leaves.