By Week two. The novelty of lockdown has worn off and the reality has settled in like a houseguest who won't leave. The kids are restless. Marcus paces the hallway between virtual classes like a caged animal. Isaiah shoots baskets in the driveway for three hours a day. Jasmine sings — everywhere, constantly, the house filled with her voice because the voice needs space and the house is the only space she has. Zoe draws at the kitchen table, quiet and focused, producing artwork that is, honestly, remarkable for a ten-year-old. She drew the kitchen last week — a detailed sketch of my stove, the Folgers can, the window — and I put it on the refrigerator next to Jasmine's valentines and Marcus's debate ribbons and the refrigerator is a gallery of six lives pressed together.
Curtis. I'm worried about Curtis. He's seventy-four and alone in the Cascade Heights house and I can't go see him because the virus is real and he's high-risk and the six feet between us might as well be six miles. I call him every day. I bring food to his porch — Sunday dinners in containers, labeled by day, the same system I used for Mama during chemo. The parallel is not lost on me. I cook for my father and leave it on his porch and drive away and the leaving is an act of love that feels like an act of abandonment and I hate it and I do it because doing it keeps him alive.
Made a big pot of red beans and rice — the cheap meal, the stretch meal, the meal that feeds six people for three dollars and fills the house with the smell of something that doesn't care about viruses. Andouille sausage, red beans, rice, Mama's recipe. The recipe that got me through the first year of single motherhood. The recipe that knows how to stretch a dollar into a feast. We are six people in a pandemic and the beans are enough and the rice is enough and the table is enough.
Red beans and rice was Mama’s recipe, and it carried us through that week the way it always has — but sausage is the heart of that pot, the thing that gives the whole dish its voice. When I started thinking about what to make next, something I could stretch across the week and feed six people without blinking, I kept coming back to sausage and peppers on a roll: same principle, same spirit, different shape. It’s the kind of meal that doesn’t require much and gives back everything.
Italian Sausage Sandwich
Prep Time: 10 minutes | Cook Time: 25 minutes | Total Time: 35 minutes | Servings: 6
Ingredients
- 6 Italian sausage links (sweet, hot, or a mix)
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 1 large yellow onion, sliced into half-moons
- 2 green bell peppers, sliced
- 1 red bell pepper, sliced
- 4 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 teaspoon Italian seasoning
- 1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes (optional)
- Salt and black pepper to taste
- 1 cup marinara or pasta sauce
- 6 hoagie or sub rolls, split
- 1 1/2 cups shredded mozzarella cheese
Instructions
- Brown the sausage. Heat 1 tablespoon of olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the sausage links and cook, turning occasionally, until browned on all sides and cooked through, about 12–15 minutes. Transfer to a cutting board and slice into 1-inch rounds, or leave whole.
- Cook the peppers and onions. In the same skillet, add the remaining tablespoon of olive oil. Add the onion and bell peppers and cook over medium-high heat, stirring occasionally, until softened and beginning to caramelize, about 8 minutes. Add the garlic, Italian seasoning, and red pepper flakes. Season with salt and pepper. Cook 1 minute more.
- Combine with sauce. Return the sausage to the skillet. Pour the marinara sauce over everything and stir gently to coat. Reduce heat to low and simmer 5 minutes, until everything is heated through and the flavors come together.
- Toast the rolls. Place the split rolls cut-side up on a baking sheet and broil for 1–2 minutes until lightly golden. Watch closely.
- Assemble the sandwiches. Spoon the sausage and pepper mixture onto the bottom halves of the rolls. Top generously with shredded mozzarella. Return to the broiler for 1–2 minutes until the cheese is melted and bubbly. Close the sandwiches and serve immediately.
Nutrition (per serving)
Calories: 510 | Protein: 24g | Fat: 29g | Carbs: 38g | Fiber: 3g | Sodium: 940mg