Click here to pin this Italian Stuffing recipe!

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This post is sponsored by Fisher Nuts.

Every time I walk past the seasonal squash display in the produce section I have to grab a couple of something. Until I cooked up this Stuffed Acorn Squash recipe a couple of weeks ago my counter was filled with a family of acorn squash, delicata squash and old reliable, spaghetti squash. It’s a good thing they have a pretty decent counter life because I’ve been more of a collector than a cooker lately so it took some time to finally getting around to baking them up.

I knew exactly what I wanted to do with the acorn squash though. I have prepared Stuffed Acorn Squash before and I absolutely love it. This stuffing is filled with crumbled Italian chicken sausage, kale, walnuts and grated Parmesan cheese – so simple and so delicious when you scoop up a bite with the sweet squash. Sausage and kale are a match made in heaven and adding crunchy walnuts to the mix just put it over the top. I’m very texture driven so I loved the crunch from the walnuts, along with the earthy nutty flavor.

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If you asked my family what they want to eat on Game Day, they will more than likely answer burgers. We tend to grill burgers at least once a week, especially in the fall when the weather in Florida is actually comfortable to grill out in. I love playing around with burger creations, and these Italian Turkey Sausage Sliders were most definitely a hit and will be making a regular appearance on the burger rotation at our house.

What’s great about these burgers are that they are lighter than your typical burger, for a few reasons. For one, they are smaller (hence the term sliders). They are also made with a blend of leaner ground turkey sausage and chopped mushrooms using the Blend method. The Blend method adds chopped mushrooms to the meat mixture, enhancing the texture and flavor while lightening them up and adding nutrients. Read more about how blending mushrooms into your meals makes them better here.

Grab my recipe for these juicy Italian Turkey Sausage Sliders over on The Mushroom Channel blog today!

You still have time until the end of the month to share your own blended burger creations on Instagram by tagging your photo with #GameDayBlend for a chance to win a pretty sweet Tailgate Prize Pack! See details here.

(Disclosure:  I am in a partnership with The Mushroom Council and am compensated for my time in creating recipes for their blog. All opinions are my own. Thank you for supporting the brands that support Aggie’s Kitchen!)

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Click here to pin this Spaghetti Squash with Sausage and Mushroom Bolognese recipe.

Spaghetti squash is back in my life thanks to my friend Katie’s recent post on Facebook. Why have I never thought to roast it whole in the oven like that? It makes it so much easier than struggling to try and cut it and fit it into a dish in the microwave. Yes, it takes about an hour (give or take) but once it’s in the oven that’s it. After it cooks and softens all you have to do is slice it longways, scoop out the seeds and fork out the strands – easy!

(Or – slice it into rings like my friend Beth recently posted about. Rings = longer strands that actually look like spaghetti. Genius! I’m trying this next time. But roasting it whole first.)

If you don’t have time to roast it in the oven and have an instant pot, here is how to cook spaghetti squash in the Instant Pot!

My favorite way to eat spaghetti squash is with a hearty tomato based sauce (like this one). I’ll never tell you that spaghetti squash will take the place of pasta, but if you are trying to cut back on calories, carbs or whatever – then this Spaghetti Squash with Sausage and Mushroom Bolognese is for you. To me, it’s the next best thing to sitting down to a plate of pasta (and feeling really good about it).

Here are a few more healthy dinner ideas for you.

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I am pretending it’s not 90 degrees out and making soup this week. Guys, I don’t consider myself a very envious person, but this is the time of year where I start to experience major Fall Envy. I’ve lived in Florida most of my life (I was 10 years old when I moved here from NY) so our fall season is not new or shocking to me in any way. I’m pretty used to it whether I like it or not. But over the years, since social media hit the scene, fall in other parts of the country – REAL FALL – is a little more in your (my) face I guess you can say. It’s mid-September and I can’t tell you how many pictures I’ve seen already of apple picking, long sleeves, the start of leaves changing and yes…boots. My legs start to instantly sweat when I even think about wearing boots.

(Apples, Pumpkins and Palm Trees … Fall in Florida)

Like I said. It’s 90 degrees and I have Fall Envy. (has fall even officially started yet???)

I’m half kidding about making soup in hot weather because I actually like soup all year round. Soup in the summer is actually a nice way to enjoy all those colorful veggies that are bursting everywhere you look. Two of my favorite soups to make in the summer months are this Summer Vegetable Soup with Pesto and Summer Chicken Chili Verde. Soup is good food anytime of year if you ask me.

A few weeks ago my sister in law Jamie sent me a pin of this Italian Orzo Soup my friend Ali cooked up. The beautiful image of this soup stuck in my mind and I finally got around to making it this week. I needed a make ahead dinner for one of our nights and soup always fits the bill for evenings where we all may be eating at different times because of our schedules. What made it even better is that I already had all of the ingredients on hand in my pantry, fridge and freezer. (I love it when that happens.)

Enjoy!

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Summer vacation has officially begun in Casa Goodman. Last week was our first full week out of school and we kicked off the break with some time at a resort in Orlando using my parent’s time share points. Though it rained mostly every day, it didn’t stop my kids from non stop swimming, sliding, lazy river-ing, playing water volleyball and basketball.

I am always amazed at their endless energy and I have to say I am thankful they are at the age they can be in the pool without me physically by their side with them every minute – this mama needed a few lounge chair breaks to regain strength and un-prune her fingers and toes from all the water. I loved seeing them so active all day long, and honestly, the cloudy weather was actually a blessing – the sun came out in full force Saturday and whoa was it hot.

As always, there’s no place like home and we were all happy to get unpacked and back to normal yesterday. Since I didn’t have time to get to the grocery store before family hunger kicked in, I fell back on an ole reliable meal I tend to make pretty often throughout the summer – Grilled Italian Chicken Sausage and Peppers.

I pretty much always have a pack of precooked chicken sausages or two in the freezer (I stock up on several of the Aidell’s varieties every time I go to Costco, this time I picked up a new Italian style one from Casual Gourmet) and I usually have at least bell pepper or two along with onions in house too.

I love using soft pita bread to hold the final grilled product together as a sandwich as a opposed to a bun, and even throwing on a little feta sometimes to change things up (note: my favorite pita bread is this one from Joseph’s Bakery – only 60 calories, 6 grams of protein and 4 grams of fiber – I have seen it at Publix and Walmart in the deli section). This meal always comes together in under 30 minutes, and I know everyone in the fam will eat it up (minus the peppers for the kids) alongside a salad or some raw veggies and ranch.

A perfect easy summer meal to add to your menu in my opinion! Happy grilling! 🙂

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Game Day Chili

Recipe from Aggie’s Kitchen

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It’s the most wonderful time … of the year…

It was the start of football season in our house yesterday. It was the first Gator game and my husband woke up almost giddy. We love this time of year…it just screams fall, even though it’s still in the 90s with 80% humidity, just gross, I know. I tried to forget what was going on outside, opened up a Sam Adams Octoberfest and lit a few fall candles around the house. And started a pot of chili.

 

 

I get excited about planning our Game Day meals…for me, food is a big part of watching the game. I don’t always pay attention to every minute and detail of every play…and sometimes I fall asleep in the middle of 3rd quarter…but it’s all good, as long as the food was good and everyone was fed then I am happy. And of course if the Gators win too.

I love making chili…it’s one of those things that can be tweaked and changed every time it’s made. It’s really hard to follow a chili recipe in my opinion. I wanted to try something new this time so after perusing a bunch of recipes online I came up with a good idea of what I wanted to include in my pot of chili. I had picked up some nice looking dried New Mexico chilies at the grocery store the other day…that was a first for me. I have such a love for fresh chilies but admit I’m a bit intimidated by the dried ones…they just look hot to me! I love hot spicy food, but didn’t want to ruin a big pot of chili by making it too hot if you know what I mean. I added in one of the NM chilies whole and let it simmer in the chili…it softened naturally and kinda just fell apart. I picked out any big pieces of it that I found before serving. The chili had just the right amount of heat for us…it is on the spicy side, but could always be toned down with some sour cream or Greek yogurt if it’s too hot to handle.

 

 

This was honestly the best chili I have ever made. It had so many layers of flavor. I used a combination of chili powders that I had on hand to make it a little more interesting. And the two key ingredients in my opinion…beer and chocolate. Yes, beer and chocolate. You’ve got to try it! The chocolate gave it such a warm, almost creamy, balanced heat. It was absolutely wonderful.

PS…Don’t be intimidated by the long list of ingredients!

Game Day Chili

Ingredients:

• 1 TB olive oil
• 3-4 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 Spanish onion, chopped
• 1 lb mild turkey sausage, casings removed
• 1 red pepper, chopped
• 1 green pepper, chopped
• 2 jalapenos, chopped
• 1 cup of grilled corn kernels, about 2-3 ears of corn
• 1 can chili beans, drained but not rinsed
• 1 can kidney beans, drained but not rinsed
• 3 TB chili powder (I did a combination of regular chili powder, chipotle chili powder and New Mexico chili powder)
• 1 TB smoked paprika
• 1 TB cumin
• 1 TB garlic powder
• 1 tsp cinnamon
• 3 good pinches of salt
• 1 dried New Mexico chili, whole
• 1/2 bottle Sam Adams Octoberfest (if you prefer not to use beer, sub 1 cup red wine, chicken broth or water)
• 1 28 can of diced tomatoes
• 4 squares dark chocolate (about 1 oz), rough chopped

Directions:

1. Heat Dutch oven with 1 TB olive oil. Add onions and garlic and cook for 3-4 minutes until softened, season with salt and pepper. Add turkey sausage and crumble. Cook through, then add chopped peppers. Cook for about 10 minutes until peppers begin to soften. Add chili powder, spices, salt and dried chili and stir. Once all the spices have combined with veggies and meat, pour in half a bottle of Sam Adams Octoberfest (or any other beer you are drinking) and deglaze bottom of pot. Cook for 1-2 minutes then add in tomatoes and stir. Bring chili up to a boil then simmer for about 20-30 minutes. Add chocolate to chili and stir. Continue to cook for another 10-15 minutes on low heat. Taste for salt.
2. Serve with your favorite toppings: shredded cheese, sour cream or Greek yogurt, grilled corn kernels, chopped cilantro, green onions

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