Sausages & Greens - COOKING WITH YOUR EARS & "DEGLAZING"

Brown whole sausages in casing on both sides (any sausages work - I prefer pork, but you're eatin' it not me! Fresh or cooked...I think Fra' Mani [http://www.framani.com/] are delish, but they are expensive and their spicy is hot.).

I heat a pan (preferable one with a lid) on high heat, add olive oil, add the sausages and cover. When you hear lots of crackling turn the heat to low. When you hear almost nothing it's safe to remove the lid and turn the sausages over to brown on the other side. Crank the heat back to high and wait til you hear that crackling again. Turn to low and wait for the sound to stop. Remove the sausages to a plate. Add in water, wine, chicken broth OR vegetable broth (this is called DEGLAZING) - I've been known to even use sake. The amount of liquid you use will depend on the size of your pan. Fill the pan about 1/4" from the bottom. Add in greens of choice, a garlic clove or two and a pinch of salt - kale, chard, rapini (though it should be blanched first), collard greens, cavolo nero, Trader Joe's has a great bagged mix available. Cover and turn the heat to low and just let it go. After about 15-20 minutes add a can of cannellini beans (white kidney beans) drained and the whole sausages right on top of that and cover - if you used fresh sausages the will finish cooking and if you used smoked they will warm through. Just let it go on low (add liquid if the bottom is getting dry - you don't want the greens to burn) - I usually slice the sausages right before I'm ready to serve and put back on top. Give a toss and taste for seasoning - add salt, red pepper flakes - sprinkle shredded, grated, shaved parmigiano reggiano or pecorino romano. Serve with crusty bread (I usually refresh bread in a high heat oven - 450 for 5-10 minutes) and a salad.

NOTE TO CLAUDINE and MO - This is essentially what I brought to Kristy's, except remove the sausage from the casing...I added in blanched rapini - that I chopped up after blanching. Beans were a jar of "Giant Beans" from Trader Joe's. Stirred in shaved parm and served with crackers, but I prefer bread! Really good as a bruschetta/crostini topper or tossed with pasta.