Slow Cooker Chicken Sausage and Peppers

My house has been under siege by some sickie germs the last few weeks. Like seriously under siege people…I’ve had at least one child home sick at least 2 days each week since the week before Halloween. They seem to be passing it back and forth to each other all while my husband and I are trying to stay out of the line of fire. Somehow he’s managed to stay healthy (knock on wood); I’ve had a few feeling run-down moments, but thanks to a few good nights’ sleep and daily shots of Emergen-C I seem to be managing fine as head nurse in charge.

I have to admit though, I’m kind of over it. I want my kiddos healthy and back in school. Like now.

I really can’t complain though. Thankfully the only symptom is a lingering fever, and for anyone who’s a mom of little ones, there is something about having your kids home sick from school – they become your babies again with lots of snuggles on the couch in front of the television or in your bed. I’m actually loving that part. It gives me a great excuse to be lazy. But I’m not so sure if that’s a good thing or not (don’t look now, but the laundry pile is getting pretty scary).

Speaking of lazy…this is truly the perfect dinner for any day you’re feeling a little lazy. This recipe kind of seems like a no-brainer but until yesterday, I’ve never actually prepared sausage and peppers in the crock pot. And I probably wouldn’t have made this if it weren’t for catching my friend Judy‘s tweet yesterday asking for ideas for a quick or make ahead dinner to put together for her family last night. I suggested sausage and peppers, knowing that you can pretty much prep it ahead of time and even cook it up early to reheat at dinner time if need be. She responded by saying that was what she was going to make…but in the crock pot. Well, you know what, I decided to do the exact same thing.

Everything cooked up so nicely together, the sausage was fork tender and there was just enough extra sauce to toss with some pasta I cooked up alongside it (for the record, my kids do not like peppers at all, so we worked around that for them). I would have loved to eat a plate of this with some nice crusty Italian bread, but I didn’t have any in the house, will have to plan that for next time for sure.

I happen to have fresh Italian chicken sausage in the freezer, but feel free to use pork or turkey Italian sausage as well.

Print Recipe

Slow Cooker Chicken Sausage and Peppers

Ingredients:

• 1 1/4 - 1 1/2 lbs fresh Italian chicken sausage
• 3 bell peppers, sliced (I used a mix of green and yellow, feel free to use whatever you like)
• 1 large yellow onion, sliced
• 1 15oz can Italian style diced tomatoes, slightly drained
• 1 8 oz can tomato sauce
• 1 teaspoon dried Italian seasoning
• 1 teaspoon pesto, optional
• 1 tablespoon red wine vinegar, optional

Directions:

1. Preheat a skillet over medium-high heat. Add your chicken sausages to pan, cook on each side until browned, about 4-5 minutes total. Chicken sausage does not need to be cooked through. Set aside.
2. Add sliced peppers, onions, tomatoes, sauce, seasoning, pesto and vinegar into your slow cooker. Gently stir to combine. Add your sausages to top of vegetable and sauce mixture. Cover and cook on low for 6-8 hours.
3. Serve over pasta or with Italian bread.

Follow Aggie’s Kitchen’s board Slow Cooker Goodness on Pinterest.