Weekly Menu for Week of 9/29

Fall in New England and all of its magnificent color surrounds us. I feel my culinary hankerings shift to comfort food; the richer and heartier offerings. Even though today will be in the low 80s, I designed a weekly menu that takes into account that by Thursday the temp will not be above 70. Please offer up your fall-like menu plans for the week. Here are mine:

Monday
Kielbasa with Sauerkraut and Potato Pancakes (See recipe below)

Get the recipe here- http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/food/views/Fried-Sauerkraut-Cakes-with-Kielbasa-231486

Tuesday
Breaded Parmesan Pork Chops with Cinnamon Sweet Potato Fries

Wednesday
Chicken, Broccoli, and Rice Casserole

Thursday
Sausage and Tortellini Soup (This recipe is on my blog)

Friday
Home Tomato Basil Pizza

Keep warm with sausage, tortellini, and bean soup.

As promised, here's another soup recipe for you to savor. I can't say enough about how wonderfully satisfying this soup is. It has many of my favorite foods- sausage, pasta, and tomatoes. You could make it healthier by adding kale or spinach and leaving the sausage out. Or you could use chicken sausage instead. This soup, like the lentil soup in the previous post, is very filling. And it cooks up quite fast. It is a soup meal. We enjoyed dipping some buttery bread in this soup tonight. I know I'll be making this again soon as we're about to head into another deep freeze next week with highs only in the teens. The Polar Vortex is going to bring us another round. Stay warm and keep your soup on!

Sausage, Bean, and Tortellini Soup

Serves 8

• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 pound Italian sausages, castings removed
• 1 large onion, chopped
• 2 carrots, diced
• 1 celery stalk, chopped
• 1 tablespoon chopped garlic
• 1 teaspoon dried basil
• 1 teaspoon dried rosemary
• 1 tablespoon tomato paste
• 1/4 teaspoon dried crushed red pepper
• 6 cups chicken broth
• 1 14 1/2-to 16-ounce can diced tomatoes
• 1 15- to 16-ounce can kidney beans, drained
• 1 bag of frozen tortellini

Preparation
Heat oil in heavy large pot or dutch oven over medium-high heat. Add sausages and sauté until beginning to brown, breaking up with back of spoon, about 5 minutes. Add onions, carrots, celery, garlic, basil, rosemary, and crushed red pepper. Sauté until vegetables begin to soften, about 10 minutes. Add broth, tomatoes with their juices, tomato paste and beans. Bring soup to boil. Reduce heat and simmer until vegetables are tender and flavors blend, about 25 minutes.

Add frozen tortellini to soup and simmer until tender, about 10 minutes. Season to taste with salt and pepper. The soup is even more delicious when you sprinkle it with parmesan cheese. 

Adapted from this Bon Appetit  recipe - http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/food/views/Pasta-Sausage-and-Bean-Soup-836#ixzz2qo0Fk2dl