Happy Sunday! It’s been a pretty dreary week here in New England, rainy and cold, but this weekend has brought some sunny weather and comfortable temperatures! I myself have been exhausted lately and the weather was not helping one bit! But with the early summer weather back I am ready to get back to you guys!

Life itself has been pretty hectic and I’ve been a bit mentally pre-occupied by the birth of my best friends baby! I also got completely wiped out by a bad summer cold after memorial day weekend so my month has been a bit out of sorts.

I also finally got my garden planted. It’s doing ok, except for the occasional Weimaraner tramping through.

Rainy June days, but my new fern has brightened up my kitchen!

As far as summer foods, I have been cooking a lot and ready to share a bunch of refreshing and delicious recipes. A lot of them are pretty simple and require little preparation and few ingredients. Everything you’d want for an easy summer dinner to optimize outside relaxation and cocktailing.

This recipe I made on a dreary Sunday evening last weekend. It actually includes my new favorite food- chicken sausage. I am not a huge fan of Italian pork sausage, but my husband is, and my new love/discovery of chicken sausage has brought our tastes to a happy medium in this house.

This recipe is a new  favorite. It just tastes like summer, but is still hearty and filling.

Pro Tip: you can actually cook the chicken sausage ahead of time on a sheet in the oven. Slice and sautee with some olive oil to heat up. But this method isn’t as flavorful as using the oil obtained from pan cooking the sausage to cook the rest of the meal.

Basil fresh from my garden. Tomato…not quiet yet but by the end of summer they will be!

Once my chicken sausage is cooked I just nestle the cherry tomatoes in the skillet and barely mix them. You don’t want to overwork the tomatoes because they will breakdown and get saucy. For this dish you want them to remain fairly whole and just blistered.

For the ease I went with store bought gnocchi, I do have a goal to make my own at home, but for a week night meal whats better than gnocchi in 2 minutes?

Of course when you go with store bought you also have time for the things important things-

You really can’t beat this meal. It’s got everything you need in one pan. And in easy one pan style, we just put a trivet down on the table, put a big spoon in the pan and plop it down on the table.

Keep you eye out this week for some amazing low-prep pork chops and possibly some summery seafood by the next weekend!

Gnocchi with Chicken Sausage and Tomato

• 1 lb Fresh Gnocchi
• 1 lb Chicken Sausage, sliced into about 1/4″ thick pieces.
• 1 pint Cherry Tomatoes, sliced in half.
• Handful of Fresh Basil Leaves, chopped.
• 1 Tbsp Olive Oil
• Salt and Pepper

Bring a pot of salted water to a boil, cook the gnocchi as directed, drain and toss with olive oil. Set aside.

Heat a large skillet over medium-high heat and add your olive oil. Add sausage and sautee until browned, about 5 minutes. Push sausage to the outside of the skillet and turn heat to high.

Place tomatoes in the center of the pan, season with salt and pepper, and cook for about 2 minutes until blistered. Then mix with the sausage and cook for another 2 minutes. Reduce heat back to medium and add basil and gnocchi. Stir together carefully and  cook just until combined and warm (if your gnocchi got a bit cool waiting for the rest.) Be careful not to overwork your tomatoes that they break down.

Season with more salt and pepper, if needed and add a bit more basil for some garnish/greenery if desired!