Pasta with Sausage & Peppers

I made this dish to help use up the sausages I made from Vegan Brunch.  You wouldn't think four sausages are a lot, but it turns out they are.  The sausages are so jumbo, that it's probably really like 8 sausages.  They were super tasty and I will make them again, but most likely in a half batch.  I was really creative with this batch, making brunch, two different pastas, topping a pizza with them, chopping them and adding them to burritos - the list goes on and on.  At some point I would like to try the other sausage options in the book.

I am actually sort of trying to make my way through the entire cookbook, making everything, or most everything (there are a couple dishes in there I am pretty sure I would not like).  There are actually a few cookbooks I am slowly making my way through.  I have a bunch of them, they have been sitting there for a couple years while I've been in the city, just collecting dust, so I might as well do something with them right?  After all, why did I buy them in the first place?  That's what the Hubby has been saying lately anyway, and I agree.  It also forces me to be more creative, because I definitely feel that I have been in a rut lately, cooking wise.  I feel like I am making the same thing over and over again and even though it is tasty, it's kind of boring.  I am especially doing this with kale.  I absolutely love kale, but I always find myself either braising or sauteing it.  I have baked it several times, but the end result is the same.  Any new ideas on how to cook kale? 

I am pretty excited though, because I have been asking my Mum for the longest time to send me the rest of my cookbooks - I know there are probably at least 50 more, most of them being vegetarian and several being vegan.  Some are even raw, though I am not super interested in that anymore.  Who has the time?  Can't wait for the books!  I'll let you know when they're here, and see if there is anything interesting that I rediscover!  It has been over 4 years, after all!

Pasta with Sausage & Peppers:

So Simple and Tasty!


Serves 4

8 oz. spaghetti, broken in half while uncooked

Sausage & Peppers:
4 tablespoons Earth Balance
1 1/2 tablespoons olive oil
1 small orange pepper, julienned, about 1/2 cup
1 small yellow pepper, julienned, about 1/2 cup
1 small green pepper, julienned, about 1/2 cup
15-20 green beans, tough ends removed
4 cloves garlic, minced
1 vegan sausage, preferably homemade, lightly fried
5 artichoke hearts, quartered
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
1/2 teaspoon sea salt
Vegan Parm, to serve

1.  Begin by cooking the pasta.  Bring a large pot of salted, oiled water to a boil.  Once boiling, drop in the pasta, stirring immediately so it does not clump.  Cook just until al dente, then drain and keep hot.
2.  Place a wok over medium-high heat on the stove and add the earth balance and olive oil.  Allow the earth balance to melt.  Once it is nice and bubbly, add the orange, yellow and green peppers, as well as the green beans.  Saute, stirring periodically until beans are tender-crisp. 
3.  Add the minced garlic and cook for about 2 minutes, or until fragrant.  Add the remaining ingredients: the sausage, sliced on the diagonal, artichokes, sea salt and black pepper.  Stir everything together and season to taste. 
4. To serve, place a portion of the cooked pasta on your plate, top with a heaping serving of the sausage/peppers mixture.  Sprinkle with vegan parm if desired.

-Enjoy!

-K