Polish Sausage with Apples Onions and Butternut Squash
This 1-pot meal, made with main ingredients all purchased at the farmers market, including the pork sausage from MAE Farm, is full of fall flavor. Served with a side of homemade, buttery spaetzle, this is a meal you'll want to make to keep you cozy on cold nights.
4linkssmoked Polish sausageI used MAE Farm Polish sausage
1largesweet onionthinly sliced
1-2clovesgarlicminced
2cooking appleswashed, cored and sliced (peeling optional)
1 ½cupsbutternut squashdiced
salt and freshly ground black pepperto taste
½teaspoonpoultry seasoning
⅓cupapple cider
⅓cupchicken stockstore bought or homemade
2Tablespoonsapple cider vinegar
For the Spaetzle (technique courtesy of Ken Albala)
1 ½cupsall purpose or bread flour
heavy pinchsalt and freshly ground black pepper
several gratingsfresh nutmeg
1egg, beaten
1-1 ¼ cupwhole milkenough to make a thick batter
2Tablespoonsunsalted butter
Instructions
For the Sausage, Apples, Onions and Butternut Squash
Slice the sausage into bite-sized coins and cook in a heavy-bottomed skillet over medium heat until browned on all sides, about 10 minutes. Remove to a plate and set aside. Drain out all but 2 Tablespoons of fat from the pan and return it to medium-low heat.
Add the sliced onion and a pinch of salt and freshly ground pepper. Cook for a minute or so and then add the garlic.
Increase the heat to medium and cook slowly until lightly caramelized and soft all the way through, about 15 minutes. Reserve a large spoonful of the onions and set aside.
To the remaining onions, add the sliced apples and diced butternut along with another pinch of salt and pepper and the poultry seasoning. Cook until beginning to soften and gain some color, about 5 minutes.
Add the apple cider, chicken stock, and apple cider vinegar. Cover the pan and cook about 10 minutes, until the vegetables are al dente.
Remove the lid from the pan and increase the heat to medium high to reduce the liquid to a glaze, about 5 minutes.
Return the meat to the pan and heat through. Adjust seasonings as necessary, and serve with the spaetzle.
For the Spaetzle
Put a large pot of water on to boil.
In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour and dry seasonings.
Beat the egg together with 1 cup of milk and mix into the dry ingredients.
You should end up with a thick pancake batter. If the batter doesn't flow off your whisk or fork, stir in additional milk until you have the right consistency. Do not lose sleep over this. A little thick or a little thin, these will still be delicious.
Open a large, zip-top bag and tuck inside a large cup or glass with the bag folded back all around over the lip of the glass (like you'd put a trashcan liner in a trash can. This will help you get the batter into the bag without making a mess, especially if you don't have an extra set of hands to help you.
Press the batter down into one corner of the bag. Once the water is boiling, lightly salt it, and then snip off about 1/4" of the corner of the bag.
Hold the bag over the pot of boiling water, and stream the batter into the water.
When all the noodles are floating, you're done. This will take about a minute. Drain the spaetzle and toss with the butter.
Heat a nonstick skillet over medium heat. Once hot, add the buttered spaetzle, a pinch of salt and pepper, and the reserved onions to the pan and cook, tossing with a spatula frequently, until the spaetzle turns a lovely deep golden-brown in spots, about 5 minutes.