Keeling over for Kielbasa

Awhile back, I had some fresh kielbasa sausages from the Willy St. Co-op in the freezer. They were meant for someone else, but I decided to make them for myself. I used the recipe for Escarole with Italian Sausage and White Beans from Epicurious. (See my swaps and substitutions below the recipe.)

Seared sausages

3 tablespoons olive oil

12 Italian sausages (about 3 pounds), casings removed

1 cup chopped onion

1/2 cup chopped prosciutto (about 2 ounces)

1 tablespoon minced garlic

1/2 teaspoon dried crushed red pepper

1 large head escarole, chopped (about 10 cups)

3/4 cup dry white wine

4 15-ounce cans Great Northern beans, rinsed, drained

1 cup chicken stock or canned low-salt chicken broth

Freshly grated Parmesan cheese (optional)

Heat oil in heavy large pot over medium-high heat. Working in batches, sauté sausage until cooked through, breaking up with back of spoon, about 6 minutes per batch. Using slotted spoon, transfer sausage to bowl, leaving drippings in pot. Reduce heat to medium; add onion to pot and sauté until translucent, about 5 minutes. Add prosciutto and sauté 1 minute. Mix in garlic and crushed red pepper. Add escarole and sauté until wilted, about 2 minutes. Add wine and cook 2 minutes. Add beans, stock and sausage and simmer 10 minutes to blend flavors. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Transfer to large bowl. Top with grated Parmesan, if desired.

Sauteeing kale and onions

I switched out the escarole for kale, added rosemary, substituted kielbasa for the Italian sausage, added more garlic, omitted the prosciutto, and used water instead of chicken broth. Despite only using water, it was still uber-flavorful. I think the kielbasa juices, the white wine, and the garlic made it.

With the cannellini

Served up on a plate w/ shards of parmesan