Cajun Chicken Sausage Lasagna Recipes

SAUSAGE LASAGNA

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 400°. In a large skillet, cook and crumble sausage with onion over medium heat until no longer pink, 5-7 minutes; drain. Add garlic and tomato paste; cook and stir 1 minute. , Stir in tomatoes, tomato sauce, basil, 1/2 teaspoon pepper and salt; bring to a boil. Reduce heat; simmer, uncovered, until slightly thickened, 10-15 minutes., In a bowl, mix egg, ricotta cheese, 1-1/4 cups Parmesan cheese and the remaining pepper. Spread 1-1/2 cups meat sauce into a greased 13x9-in. baking dish. Layer with 4 noodles, 1-1/2 cups ricotta cheese mixture, 1-1/2 cups mozzarella cheese and 1-1/2 cups sauce. Repeat layers. Top with the remaining noodles, sauce and mozzarella and Parmesan cheeses., Cover with greased foil; bake 30 minutes. Uncover; bake until lightly browned and heated through, 5-10 minutes. Let stand 15 minutes before serving.

CAJUN CHICKEN LASAGNA

Steps:

• In a large skillet, cook chicken over medium heat until no longer pink. Add the celery, green pepper and onion; cook and stir 5 minutes longer or until tender. Stir in the tomatoes, water, tomato paste, Cajun seasoning and sugar. In a small bowl, combine cheeses. , Spread 1 cup meat sauce in a greased oval 5- or 6-qt. slow cooker. Layer with 3 noodles (breaking noodles if necessary to fit), a third of the remaining meat sauce and a third of the cheese mixture. Repeat layers twice. Cover and cook on low for 3-4 hours or until noodles are tender.

CAJUN CHICKEN & SAUSAGE LASAGNA

Steps:

• Boil lasagna noodles. Cook noodles al dente, or firm to the touch. They will rip if the noodles are too soft.
• Cut the garlic, onion, and Andouille sausage into small pieces and set aside.
• Cut chicken breast into small pieces and toss in Cajun seasonings. Cook seasoned chicken in skillet along with chopped onion and garlic. Set aside after all has cooked.
• For alfredo sauce, melt butter in sauce pan over medium heat. Add heavy cream, garlic powder, black pepper, and sugar. Stir and simmer for about 15 minutes. Add parmesan cheese and cream cheese to mixture and stir often to make sure cheeses melt properly.
• Prepare layers: Smear spaghetti sauce (a few tablespoons) on bottom of 9x13 pan then 3 lasagna noodles. Next, smear spaghetti sauce (a few tablespoons) over noodles. Sprinkle half chicken mixture and 1 cup of mozzarella cheese.
• Add a new layer of 3 lasagna noodles then smearing a few tablespoons of Alfredo sauce. Sprinkle half Andouillé sausage and mozzarella cheese. Repeat layers by alternating chicken with spaghetti sauce with Andouille sausage with Alfredo sauce with three noodles in between the layers.
• Sprinkle remaining mozzarella cheese, basil and oregano on very top of the last noodles and bake covered for one hour at 350 °F.
• Once cooked, let lasagna set for about 15 minutes otherwise it will fall apart when you cut into it.Pour extra Alfredo and spaghetti sauce on top of each piece of lasagna before serving.

CAJUN CHICKEN LASAGNA WITH ANDOUILLE SAUSAGE

Steps:

• Heat oven to 350°F.
• Cook noodles as directed on package, omitting salt. Meanwhile, cook sausage, chicken and Cajun seasoning in large skillet 8 min. or until chicken is no longer pink, stirring occasionally. Remove meat mixture from skillet with slotted spoon; set aside. Discard all but 1 Tbsp. drippings from skillet. Add vegetables and garlic to reserved drippings; cook and stir 4 to 5 min. or until vegetables are crisp-tender. Stir in meat mixture, 2 cups pasta sauce and 2 Tbsp. Parmesan.
• Drain noodles. Spread 1/2 cup of the remaining pasta sauce onto bottom of 13x9-inch baking dish sprayed with cooking spray; cover with layers of 4 noodles, 1/3 of the meat mixture and 1/2 cup mozzarella. Repeat all layers twice. Cover with remaining noodles, pasta sauce, mozzarella and Parmesan. Cover with foil sprayed with cooking spray.
• Bake 1 hour or until heated through. Let stand 15 min. before cutting to serve.

CAJUN CHICKEN AND SAUSAGE JAMBALAYA

Steps:

• The most important thing is to use the right equipment and I would suggest the following: a 2-gallon cast iron Dutch oven, a high BTU gas stove, and a large stainless steel chef's spoon.
• Use high heat to preheat the Dutch oven and add the sausage. Using a chef's spoon or large spoon, constantly move the sausage from the bottom of the pot. Be careful not to burn the meat. (Normally I use Manda's sausage because it has little fat, however at this point you may want to drain off all of the excess grease to reduce the fat content from the dish.)
• Add the thigh meat and brown the chicken on all sides. Again use the spoon to scrape the meat from sticking and burning to the bottom of the pot. Browning the sausage and chicken meats should take 20 minutes. Be careful not to over cook the thigh meat to the point that it shreds.
• Lower the heat to medium and add the onions and garlic; saute for about 15 minutes or until the onions are very limp and "clear". Scrape the bottom of the pot to remove all the "graton". This is where the jambalaya gets its distinct brown color and taste.
• Add the tasso, thyme, basil and black and white pepper. Simmer over low heat for 10 minutes. This will give the seasonings time to release their oils and flavors.
• At this point the jambalaya concentrate can be transferred to smaller containers, cooled to room temperature, covered and refrigerated for future use. (This is what we do commercially; it allows the seasonings to marry.)
• When you are ready to cook the jambalaya, add the stock to the concentrate and bring to a rolling boil. Add the rice, reduce the heat to medium and gently break up the rice. Using the stainless steel paddle, continue to insure that the rice is not sticking to the bottom of the pot; this is very important!
• After about 5 minutes, fold in the parsley. Continue to scrape the pot to insure that no rice sticks to the bottom. When the jambalaya returns to a boil, reduce heat to the lowest possible setting and simmer, covered, for at least 25 minutes. Do not remove the cover while the rice is steaming.
• If Manda's brand sausage is not available, any lean smoked sausage can be substituted. You may have to remove any excess grease from the pot after frying down an unknown sausage.
• For a richer jambalaya substitute turkey stock for the chicken stock called for above.
• If no stocks are available, then chicken soup base can be used. Be careful with your seasoning, as bases are usually full of salt.
• Alternate Method:
• The jambalaya is best when served directly out of the cast iron pot. While the rice is steaming, the sausage and meat will have a tendency to float to the surface of the jambalaya. Therefore, after the rice has steamed for 25 minutes, use the paddle to gently fold in the meat and seasonings into the cooked rice. This should only be done once or twice, the rice will loose a lot of heat and the rice will break apart.
• Also note, I do not add salt to my jambalaya. This is because I like to use herbs, tasso and seasonings to satisfy the need for salt. I would suggest having the table set with salt shakers and a selection of hot pepper sauces.
• Plate Presentation:

CAJUN CHICKEN LASAGNA

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 325 degrees.
• Bring a large pot of lightly salted water to a boil.
• Add pasta and cook for eight to ten minutes, or until al dente;drain.
• In a large skillet over medium-high heat, combine sausage, chicken, Cajun seasoning and sage.
• Cook until chicken is no longer pink and juices run clear, about 8 minutes.
• Remove meat from skillet with a slotted spoon and set aside.
• Saute onion, celery, bell pepper and garlic until tender.
• Remove from heat and stir in meat and one container alfredo sauce.
• Lightly grease a nine-by-13-inch baking dish.
• Cover bottom with 4 lasagna noodles.
• Spread with half the meat mixture.
• Repeat layers, ending with a layer of noodles.
• Spread remaining alfredo sauce over top.
• Top with mozzarella cheese and sprinkle with Parmesan cheese.
• Bake one hour.
• Let stand 15 minutes before serving.