Italian Sausage Pepper and Onion Subs

        Sandwiches are probably my favorite kind of food. There are endless possibilities of combinations - subs, wraps, whole wheat, white, rye, toasted, grilled, pressed and stretching with melted cheese, globs of sauce and veggies fall out as you take a big bite - Oooooh yeaaaaah! One of my favorite kinds is a good old fashion, fair style sausage pepper and onion sub. Spicy sausages, sweet peppers, crunchy onions and juicy tomatoes all soaked up in a marinara sauce seasoned with italian herbs and covered in cheese. What's better than that?! Well the fact it's cheap, easy to make and stays great for leftovers definitely makes it a great (and delicious) college food.

            One package of Johnsonville sausages and two peppers (one of them was abnormally large, nearly the size of my head- like it was some kind of alien pepper, so basically three peppers) made a ton of food that made two big subs for dinner and leftovers for lunch for three to four days.

            You could even make it with frozen veggies, though fresh is always recommended, but either way will work. We put ours on whole wheat subs to boost the nutritional value a little bit (sausages surely aren't the greatest thing for you...) and topped it with some feta cheese, because I'm obsessed.

        Plus it's a one pot meal - and for someone who is notorious for making messes in the kitchen, it's my kind of dish! Oooh and it smells deliccccious while cooking! Especially if you toast the buns in the oven with a little garlic...Mmmhmm

The recipe serves 4-5 for large dinner sized subs, more for smaller lunch meals

Italian Sausage Pepper and Onion Subs

Ingredients:

1 pkg spicy italian sausage (19oz)

2 tsp olive oil

1 tbsp minced garlic

1 green bell pepper

1 red bell pepper

1 yellow bell pepper (optional)

1 onion

1 14oz can italian style diced tomatoes

1/2 cup tomato sauce

1/3 cup white wine

1 tbsp italian seasonings

(or 1 tsp oregano, 1 tsp thyme, 1 tsp basil)

1 tsp onion powder

1/2 tsp salt

1/2 tsp pepper

1/2 - 1 tsp red pepper flakes (optional)*

1 cup cheese - (feta, cheddar, mozz, etc!)

Whole wheat sub rolls

Butter

Garlic powder

*The sausages are fairly spicy themselves, but they mild out a little when cooking in the sauce. If you are looking for a spicy sub, add the red pepper!

Directions:

Cook sausages according to package directions. While they are cooking, julienne peppers, then cut once in half and slice onions. Remove sausages from pan, set aside and drain, then add olive oil in pan over medium heat. Once hot add garlic, peppers and onions to the pan. Stir constantly until they've softened (about five minutes). Add marinara sauce and tomatoes and cook, stirring, for another couple minutes then add wine. Chop the sausages to bite sized pieces and add back to the pan along with all seasonings. Bring sauce to a low boil then reduce to low, simmer and cover. 

While simmering, cut sub rolls in half, spread with butter and sprinkle with garlic powder. Bake in oven at 350 degrees for about seven minutes or until butter is melted and they are toasted. If you are using cheddar or mozzarella cheese, you can melt the cheese on the buns while toasting. Once crisp, remove from oven and top with sausage mixture.