Sausage, Broccoli, Brown Rice and Parmesan Dinner

I truly had every intention of making this meal exactly as it was posted. It looked wonderful and sounded like something my husband would love. The recipe called for cheese filled chicken sausage. This is the second time that I have been on a mission for chicken sausage and I have yet to locate any in our local grocery stores! It's been quite frustrating! :) If anyone has any ideas, please feel free to share! I decided, instead, to go with a turkey Italian sausage (which is the same thing I substituted in the last dish as well). While the prep work on the meal was a bit more difficult using this option, the flavor was incredible. Looking at the pictures on Picky Palate, it seems that the sausage she used was cooked through, making it easy to slice and brown as part of her directions describe. My turkey sausage was uncooked and as I tried to slice it, it was sliding out of the casing. I was afraid that if I cooked it first (before slicing) it would dry out. Instead, I used a serrated knife and slowly cut my slices. My sausage pieces looked more like meatballs in my finished dish, but they held together well and the flavors worked really well together.

Sausage, Broccoli, Brown Rice and Parmesan Dinner

3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil

1 red bell pepper, diced

1 clove garlic, minced

1.25 lbs turkey Italian sausages, thinly sliced

4 cups broccoli florets, steamed until fork tender

4 cups cooked brown rice

1/2 cup grated parmesan cheese

salt and pepper to taste

Heat olive oil into a large skillet over medium heat. Saute bell pepper for 5 minutes or until softened. Stir in garlic; cook for 1 minutes then add sausage slices. Cook for 5 minutes or until sausage is browned on both sides and all pink is gone. Add broccoli, rice and parmesan cheese. Cook for 2 minutes or so, then season with salt and pepper to your liking.

Source: Adapted from Picky Palate