The best part of cooler weather? Savory Fall Stew with Sausage!
I love the melding of flavors in this stew. Sweet squash and carrots. Earthy parsnips and Brussels sprouts. Hearty potatoes. The unique licorice flavor of fennel. A kick of heat from the Italian sausage, and a chicken broth-crushed tomato base. If fall had a designated stew – this is it!
Tweaking Martha’s Recipe
I’ve cooked many delicious Martha Stewart recipes over the years. Her cookbooks and magazines grace my collection of favorites. But, I did part from her recipe a tad on this one. No offense Martha.
- Chicken broth – Martha’s recipe calls for homemade low-sodium chicken stock, fat skimmed. All I have to say about that is, knock yourself out. I used a convenient product I recently discovered called Better Than Boullion Roasted Chicken Base. But canned chicken broth would work fine too. Martha’s recipe also calls for 3 cups of broth, which wasn’t nearly enough in my opinion. I wanted a stew texture, not hotdish. I used 5 cups of broth, but I suggest starting with 4 cups and adding more if necessary.
- Onion – Instead of cipolline or pearl onions, I coarsely chopped a large sweet onion.
- Vegetable Assortment – I reduced the quantiy of parsnips and added a cup of baby potatoes.
- Italian sauage – Martha’s recipe never indcated whether the sausage was links or ground sausage. Even the instructions were a little confusing on that point. I decided on ground sausage which I think worked well.
- Crushed Tomatoes – I added 1/2 cup more, because I like tomato flavor and had extra on hand.
- Salt – I reduced the salt by 1/2 teaspoon because I was not using low sodium chicken stock to start with.
- Servings – Martha says this recipe serves 4. But they would be very large servings in my opinion. I think you can safely say 6 servings.
Head to this link if you want to check out Martha’s version of Savory Fall Stew.
Herb Bundle
I’ve never tied herbs in a bundle for soup. It’s much easier to tie them with kitchen string and throw them in the pot than mincing them. I wonder if the herbs would add more flavor, however, if they were minced. Either way, the soup has a nice balance of flavors.
Personal Update
Curious why the pace of recipes posts has slowed considerably? I’ve been feeding my other passion – writing! My devotional for caregivers is taking shape, and I even completed my first book proposal. There’s still much work to do before my project finds it’s way to a willing publisher. But it’s an exciting, humbling journey that brings me closer to God and makes my heart sing. I promise to keep cooking and sharing tasty recipes as time allows. I’ll also update you on any significant milestones on the book writing front.
Thanks for adding a Star Rating (IN RECIPE) To Let Others Know What You Thought!
Savory Fall Stew with Sausage
Ingredients
- cooking spray
- 16 ounces ground hot Italian sausage
- 1 large sweet onion chopped
- 2 cups crushed tomatoes
- 4-5 cups chicken broth
- 1/2-ounce bundle of rosemary and thyme tied with kitchen string
- 3 cups butternut squash peeled, seeded, and cut into 1-inch chunks
- 3 carrots peeled and cut into 1/2-inch pieces
- 2 cups parsnips peeled and cut into 1-inch pieces
- 1 fennel bulb trimmed, core removed and cut into 1/4-inch-thick, bite-sized pieces
- 1 cup baby red or yellow potatoes halved or quarter, depending on size
- 12 brussels sprouts trimmed and cut in half or quatered, depending on size
- 1 1/2 teaspoons salt
- 1/8 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
Instructions
- Spray dutch oven or large saucepan with cooking spray. Add sausage, and cook over medium heat, stirring until it breaks into medium-sized pieces and is no longer pink, about 10 minutes. Remove the sausage with a slotted spoon, and set aside.
- Add onions, and cook, stirring, until golden, 5 to 6 minutes.
- Add tomatoes, 4 cups chicken broth, and herbs; simmer over medium heat until the liquid starts to thicken,15-20 minutes.
- Add sausage, squash, carrots, parsnips, fennel, and potatoes. If necessary, add additional chicken broth, so the vegetables are mostly covered with liquid. Cover, and simmer until vegetables are almost tender, about 10 minutes.
- Add brussels sprouts, and cook, covered, about 5 minutes more.
- Remove cover, and cook, stirring occasionally, until liquid thickens, 10 to 15 minutes more. Season with salt and pepper, and serve.
I Would Love to Hear From You