30 minute meal

Cajun Sausage Ravioli

Recently I was gifted some delicious sausage from a friend and I challenged myself to come up with a quick 30 minute meal using it. The sausage is Lord & Barrett Sausage Co. Creole Style Green Onion Smoked Sausage & I highly recommend because it was delicious and I’m personally not a big fan of smoked sausage. Let’s make the recipe!

Ingredients:

Smoked Sausage (sliced)
1/2 medium onion chopped
1/2 cup of peppers chopped (I used a combo of red, yellow and orange mini sweet bell peppers but you can certainly just use a green bell pepper)
2-3 cloves of garlic minced
1 cup heavy whipping cream
1/2 cup of Parmesan cheese
2 packages of fresh ravioli – I only used one but you definitely need mor because not a lot come in the package
Seasonings- I used Cajun seasoning, garlic & onion powder
1-2 tbsp of olive oil
1-2 tbsp of butter
Chopped fresh or dried Basil (optional)

Directions: Prepare water to boil for pasta according to package. Heat skillet on medium heat and add a tablespoon of oil and sauté sausages until crispy or cooked though which took me about 5-8 minutes. Remove sausage and drain oil excellent for about a teaspoon. Add butter and cook onions, garlic & peppers until soft. Make sure once water boils to add ravioli and cook til al dente. Reserve a cup of pasta water in case you need to thin your sauce out later. Season lightly & then add heavy whipping cream to onions and peppers mixture. Let cook until simmering and then add sausage, cooked ravioli and Parmesan cheese. Taste for more seasoning and add if needed. Top with more cheese and Basil.

This recipe is delicious, quick, doesn’t require a lot of ingredients and easy to make. Perfect to get you in and out of the kitchen during the summertime! I also made a video to show how I made this on Instagram. Follow me @severalpeoplesmama Let me know if this is something you or your family would enjoy!

Love Ricki

Shrimp and Grits

Easter Brunch has been a tradition I started for my family a few years ago. Because Easter is my favorite holiday I have a special dish I prepare usually only at this time of year: Shrimp and Grits. This dish is so good and so easy to make! If you’re invited to my house for brunch you better get there early or you WILL miss out! Here’s the recipe:

Ingredients:

1 small to medium onion finely diced
1-2 peppers diced, you can use all one color or a combination I used green and red
1-2 tbsp of minced garlic (I used a paste found at Aldi)
4 slices of bacon diced
2 pounds fresh raw shrimp, peeled & deveined
1-2 tbsp of olive oil
2-3 tbsp of butter
2-3 tbsp of flour
1 cup chicken broth
2-3 tbsp tomato paste
Seasonings: Tony’s creole seasoning, pepper, cayenne (optional), garlic and onion powder, Italian seasoning & old bay

Directions: Season shrimp. Add bacon to sauté pan on medium heat. Cook bacon til crispy, remove from pan to paper towel. Reserve about 1-2 tbsp of bacon grease. Turn heat of to medium high and add seasoned shrimp. Cook about 1-2 minutes on each side until pink. Remove to paper towel with bacon. Add tbsp of olive oil and 1 tbsp of butter then onions and peppers. Sauté til soft. Add garlic and cook for and additional minute. Add another 2 tbsp of olive oil and then flour. Cook for 3-5 minutes, you do not want raw flour! After flour has been absorbed in the veggies, slowly whisk in chicken broth. A gravy should start forming. You can add more chicken broth or water depending on how thick you want your gravy. Stir tomato paste and cook for an additional 2-3 minutes and then add back in shrimp and bacon. Turn heat to medium low. Cook for an additional 2-3 minutes and I taste for seasoning. I add another tbsp of butter to make my gravy creamy and smooth. Serve over grits (see my reels on Instagram for how I make my grits). Enjoy!

This recipe goes fast and is best served immediately so make sure you have your grits ready. If you do create this recipe please be sure to tag me @severalpeoplesmama. I’d love to see it and share!

Love Ricki

Instapot Bacon Cheeseburger Soup

I’ve been trying to make this soup for weeks and I’m so glad I finally did! Instapot Bacon Cheeseburger Soup is easy, doesn’t require a lot of work (use real bacon bits instead of cooking some and save yourself even more work) and was delicious and filling. Perfect for a cold fall or winter day. Let’s cook!

You’ll also need ground beef and half and half

Ingredients:

1 1/2 pounds of ground beef
1/2 cup of chopped onions (I buy frozen from Kroger)
1/2 to 1 cup half and half
6 slices of uncooked bacon chopped (or use bacon bits)
Seasonings (you will season to taste)
Velveeta (I used a 1/4 of a 16 oz block)
1 cup Colby Jack cheese shredded
2 cups chicken broth or beef broth
1-2 cups of water
1 package of frozen southern style hash browns (cubes, or you can use the potatoes ‘o brien)
Your favorite cheeseburger toppings such as tomatoes and pickles

Directions:

Set instapot on the sauté function and spray or oil pot. Add uncooked bacon and fry til crispy. Remove bacon and bacon fat. Add grown beef and cook til almost brown. Add onions to cook with beef until completely brown. Drain fat and add seasonings. Don’t overseason as you can add more later to taste. Turn off sauté function. Add velveeta cheese, bacon (reserve a little to top your soup later) frozen hash browns and then add broth and water (if needed) making sure it’s enough to cover the ingredients. Place lid on the Instapot and set on high pressure for 10 minutes. Make sure valve is set to seal. Once done go ahead and turn valve to vent for a quick release. Once pressure is released remove lid and mash potatoes. Add more cheese and then half and half. Stir and taste to see if more seasoning is needed. Serve with cheeseburger toppings.

I made a short reel on Instagram to show exactly how I made this soup so make sure you are following me @severalpeoplesmama to watch! Also tag me there if you decide to make this recipe! I definitely think you should!

Love Ricki

Stuffed Mushrooms

Browsing thru the aisles of Aldi Saturday I found some beautiful looking Portabella mushrooms and I knew exactly what I wanted to do with them…stuffed mushrooms! This was a recipe I use to make early in my keto/low carb journey and I figured I would share it with y’all because it’s easy & delicious! I used shrimp for my protein but you can use anything. I’ve even used breakfast sausage before (just prepare it separately and add to stuffing mixture). Let’s cook!

Ingredients:

4 Portabella mushroom caps, medium to large in size. Remove stems but don’t throw away, they will be used in our filling!
Half a block of cream cheese
Half a bag of fresh spinach
Shrimp or protein of choice
2-3 tbsp of olive oil
1/2 cup each of mozzarella and Parmesan cheese plus additional for sprinkling over our mushrooms
1-2 tbsp of butter
1-2 cloves of garlic minced
Seasonings- I used garlic salt, Italian seasoning, ranch and garlic and onion powder

Directions:

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Add softened cream cheese to bowl and set aside. Heat saucepan on medium and add 1-2 tbsp of olive oil. Add spinach and sauté. Chop stems from mushrooms and add to pan sautéing til cooked. Push spinach and mushrooms to cooler side of pan and add 1 tbsp of butter. Add shrimp. If using any other protein I would suggest you cook ahead and add to pan to warm, shrimp takes minutes to cook so that’s why I did it this way. Once shrimp is cooked add garlic and seasoning and mix all together. Added that mixture to the cream cheese. Add cheeses and mix thoroughly. Taste mixture and see if more seasoning is needed. Place Portabella caps in a baking dish. You don’t want to use a sheet pan because the mushrooms will release liquid while cooking and you will have a mess! Place mushrooms in dish gill side up and sprinkle with olive oil and garlic salt. Add filling and top with more shredded cheese. Place in oven and cook for 20-25 minutes. You will have liquid in your baking dish after baking, you can take an extra step to transfer the mushrooms onto a sheet pan and place under a broiler for 3 minutes but it’s optional. We don’t mind, they still turn out yummy!

You know it’s good if the kids ask you to make this! And don’t limit yourself, this is a recipe where you can get creative and add more veggies such as peppers or different cheeses or proteins! I plan on making this more often on my keto/low carb journey!

As always if you make this tag me on Instagram @severalpeoplesmama I enjoy looking at what y’all cook!

Love Ricki

Philly Cheesesteak Ring – Yes another Ring!

Hi y’all I am back this week with a not so original recipe but DEFINITELY a fav! Listen we love rings in this household. The crescent roll dough is delicious and easy to work with and you can take just about any filling you can think of and add it for a delicious combination. Of course I’ve made Cheesesteak sliders here and Cheesesteak egg rolls here so naturally a ring was next. This recipe was super easy and you can add chips and fruit for easy sides and dinner is done! Let’s cook!

Ingredients:

Thin sliced steak
1 yellow onion sliced into half moons
1 pepper sliced into strips
2-3 tbsp of butter
1 tbsp of olive oil
Sliced mushrooms (optional)
1-2 tsps of minced garlic
Seasonings: I used Tony’s seasoning, onion and garlic powder and steak seasoning
2 cans of crescent rolls
5-6 slices of provolone cheese
4-5 slices of Gouda (this is optional, you can use all provolone or any cheese you like. Smoked Gouda would have bee delicious here as well)
Cooking spray

Directions:

Heat oven to 375 degrees. Add butter to skillet on medium high heat. Add peppers and then after a minute or so add onions. Sauté veggies and turn heat to medium. I add a little salt to this mixture to help it sweat and give a little flavor but that’s optional. After veggies are softened add mushrooms and minced garlic. Sauté til mushrooms are softened. Turn heat on high and add steak. I season steak while in the pan but you can season ahead of time as well and just add seasoned meat. Once cooked thru which should be 3-5 minutes, turn off burner and take pan off heat and set aside. In a round pizza pan or cookie sheet spread triangles of crescent dough around until it forms a shape resembling a sun (see pics). Add veggies and meat mixture and then add cheese on top. Bring points of the triangles to the center. Spray with cooking spray to help crust brown. Bake for 20 minutes or until crust is golden brown and completely baked thru. Slice and serve.

We will be making this again and believe me I am dreaming up more ring recipes to add to the blog! If you try this please tag me on Instagram @severalpeoplesmama

Love Ricki