Healthy Meal of the Week 19 With Healthy Leftover Idea

Healthy Meal of the Week: Chicken Sausage Penne Pasta
Healthy Leftover Idea: Whole Wheat Muffin Sandwich

Here’s an easy to make meal that your family will enjoy especially if they love pasta. Best yet, cooking time is right around 20 minutes so delight in the fact that you won’t be spending an excessive amount of time in front of the stove.

Be sure to give the leftover idea a try if you’d like to change it up for lunch the following day. A delicious treat that’s easy to take with you to work for lunch.

Equipment Needed
– pan for grilling
– pot for sauce
– tongs/fork for turning sausages
– colander for straining

Cooking Time
– 20 minutes

Ingredients:
Approximately 5-6 servings

– 1 box vegetable penne pasta
– 1 jar pasta sauce
– 1 small can sliced olives
– 3 medium Portobello mushrooms
– 1 package chicken sausages
– 1 bunch parsley

For leftover Whole Wheat Muffin Sandwiches:
– whole wheat English muffins
– shredded mozzarella cheese

1. Using a skillet on medium temperature add 3/4 cup of water and the sausages from the package. Use tongs or a fork to rotate every few minutes until all sides are done (slightly brown).

2. While sausages are cooking, boil water for the pasta per the directions on the container you purchased. Once water is boiling add pasta and cook uncovered stirring occasionally. The pasta used in this example required 10-12 minutes of cooking time.

3. In a small pot on low temperature add the entire contents of pasta sauce.

4. Dice up the three Portobello mushrooms and about 1/4 cup worth of parsley. Also open the can of sliced olives but drain out the juice. Add olives, parsley, and mushrooms to the pasta sauce and stir often.

5. When sausages look slightly brown on all sides remove from stove. For this meal the sausages were sliced into small bite-sized pieces and mixed into the pasta but if you prefer to keep sausages whole it’s up to you.

6. Once pasta is finished drain, using a colander and put back into empty cooking pot without any heat.

7. Add the sauce mixture and diced up sausages to the pasta and stir well. *Note: If you’re planning on making the leftover sausage muffins, be sure to save a sausage or two along with some of the sauce mixture – approximately 2 heaping spoonfuls per sandwich.

8. Serve an appropriate portion size, garnish with a bit of parsley and enjoy!

Healthy Leftover Meal: Whole Wheat Muffin Sandwiches

If you’ve ever tried the meatball sandwich from Subway, here’s an idea that tastes almost the same yet half the calories. The only extra items you’ll need are whole wheat English muffins and some shredded mozzarella cheese.

First, slice open a whole wheat English muffin and add one heaping spoonful of sauce the inside of both the top and bottom piece. Next, add some mozzarella cheese to both sides. Finally slice one sausage in half lengthwise and place on top of bottom piece of the English muffin. Cover with the top slice and microwave for 30 seconds if you want the cheese to melt and warm the muffin. If you’re planning to take this with you to work for lunch the next day, wait to microwave until you’re ready to eat.