Yes, sausage for diabetics! It's turkey breakfast sausage, which is lean, relatively cheap, and nicely seasoned. This one-pan meal also features mild and creamy cannellini beans, which absorb the flavors of the sausage. A little protein pasta provides extra substance, fiber, and "good carbs" to the dish, and fresh spinach supplies the "greens." The mixture may sound a little weird, but it works well and is quite good. It's also fast to fix, meaning you can have a nutritious dinner on the table quickly. Any leftovers make great lunches when zapped in the microwave. Enjoy!
Sausage, Beans, and Greens Dinner -- Serves 4+
2 teaspoons of canola oil
1/2 cup of chopped onion (half a medium onion)
16 ounces of lean turkey breakfast sausage (I use mild)
1 tablespoon of chopped garlic
3/4 cup of canned cannellini beans, drained and rinsed
1 cup of water
1/2 cup of protein penne pasta (or use whole-grain penne)
4 - 6 ounces of fresh spinach (3-4 handfuls)
1/3 - 1/2 cup of light sour cream
Heat the oil in a large, non-stick skillet. Add the onion and saute it a few minutes. Crumble in the turkey sausage and cook it with the onion until the turkey is mostly cooked through and starts to brown (about 10 minutes). Stir in the chopped garlic and saute it with the sausage and onions for about a minute. Stir in the beans, the water, and the pasta. Bring the mixture to a boil, stir it well, turn down the heat to medium low, and partially cover the pan. Let the mixture cook gently for about 10 minutes or until the pasta is mostly done and has absorbed most of the liquid (you want about half a cup or so of liquid to remain). Stir in the spinach, a bit at a time, until it melts into the sausage/pasta mixture. Turn off the heat and stir in the sour cream. Let the mixture sit for about five minutes before serving it.
