quick and easy meals for 1 or 2

Quick pasta with sausage

This is a little different. It’s fast, easy and real good. The Mom of one of my buddies back in Jersey used to make this real quick for us sometimes. Serves 2, but you can double it if you have company or want to save some in the freezer or fridge. It heats up good in the microwave for a fast no brainer some other day.

2 Italian sausage links ,,sweet or hot it’s up to you.
About a cup of chopped and cleaned mushrooms. Any kind are good. I like baby bellas.
½ of a small onion chopped fine
a large garlic clove minced
olive oil
about a half cup of wine white or red will work. Whatever you like.
Salt and pepper
¾ cup of heavy cream


Take the sausage meat out of the casings and cook in a sauce pan until no more pink. Break it up with a fork or turner as it cooks. When the meat starts to turn brown add about 2 tbsp. of the olive oil and the veggies. Cook for 2-3 minutes or until the onions and garlic are translucent. Add the wine and cook until the wine is reduced by about half. Add the cream, salt and pepper to taste. Simmer for about 10 min. or as long as the pasta takes. Any pasta will do but we like bite sized non swirly stuff, i.e. penne or rigatoni. Drain the pasta and save a little of the water. Add the sauce to the pasta in the pot add a little of the water if it’s too thick. Divvy it up, sprinkle some parmesan cheese and some dried parsley on it.

YOU’RE GOOD!! Some salad, good crusty bread and the rest of that wine!!

quick and easy meals for 1 or 2

Pork chops with sauce and wine

Gammy is still up in Texas and I’m all alone here. Well,, not all alone,,,Stella is a very demanding presence. I got some thin cut pork chops on the way home. When I hit the casa I got some of the sauce that we keep frozen out and put about a cup and a half (it’s frozen of course so I had to “eyeball”)in a sauce pan with a little water on the bottom and put the heat to it. Or,,you could do the butoni thing. Started the water for the pasta and did the pasta while I was tending to the pork chops. Heated up a frying pan with a little olive oil in it. Sprinkled the chops with a little garlic powder and black pepper. Fried them up. When the second side was about half done I put the sauce in the pan. and about a half cup of red wine. Cooked them the rest of the way. The wine reduced and thickened up. The pasta was done. Used the sauce right from the pan for the pasta and a little bit on the chops. I had a little tomato and onion salad and some of popop’s homemade bread. And some of that red wine!

Stella and I enjoyed it!! Stella helped me with some of the scraps from the pork and a little of the pasta. She also likes a little of the bread dipped in some olive oil. She’s an Italian dog you know.