Sausage

For a complete diner-style meal, serve this indulgent main with sautéed green beans and buttermilk biscuits.

The fennel bulb we've added to this Little Italy combo is a natural complement to the fennel seeds in the sausage.

With its warm, comforting flavors of sausage, olives, and white wine, this rustic dish will transport your guests to a farmhouse in Umbria.

Crispy, golden slices of garlic add a nice crunch and nutty flavor (picky eaters can have their pasta without or easily eat around it).

Homemade croutons add crunch to this smoky, spicy soup.

Savoy cabbage would work well here, too.

Make this recipe your own by using different sausages and cheeses. For a Middle Eastern spin, sub in lamb sausage and feta. Serve pizzas with hot sauce.

Radicchio's bitterness is a nice match for the slightly sweet sausages. Serve this hearty dish with crusty bread or with pasta tossed with olive oil, garlic, and chopped Italian parsley.

Editor's note: The recipe and introductory text below are from Rick Tramonto's book Fantastico! I serve this traditional side dish as an antipasto. Guess what? I like it more as a small plate to kick off a meal than as a side. On the other hand, you could serve this in larger amounts as a side dish or even instead of a pasta course. And because the ragu is even better the second day, I make a lot, so you will have leftovers. Soft polenta, blended with plenty of cheese and butter, is lusciously creamy and becomes the delicious base for the meaty mushroom and sausage ragu. This is a terrific start to a fall meal of fish and a salad. Polenta may be yellow or white; I prefer yellow because of its color and slightly earthy, intense flavor.

The broiled disks of polenta in this dish bring to mind an extra-delicious version of johnnycakes, topped with a hearty, savory ragout that's ready before you know it.

Editor's note: The recipe and introductory text below are from 1080 Recipes by Simone and Inés Ortega. Empanada Gallega

Editor's note: The recipe and introductory text below are from Jamie Oliver's book Cook with Jamie.

This sweet and savory stuffing can be made two weeks ahead and frozen. Defrost it in the refrigerator the night before Thanksgiving.

Toss with the vinaigrette while rice is warm, so it absorbs the flavors.

Eat this hearty chili as is or over rice.

Beware—once you've had a few bites of this rice, you'll surely be back for seconds and thirds. Loaded with bits of treasure—smoked oysters, meaty mushrooms, Chinese sausage that tastes almost candied—the rice itself has an amazing chew that exemplifies the Chinese genius for varying textures in a meal. Though the lotus-leaf wrapping is optional, the rice gains a beguiling aroma, suggestive of tea, if you do use it—and the drama of unwrapping the stuffing at the table, like a lovely present, shouldn't be underestimated.

Split and browned bratwurst provides contrast in a Normandy-style pairing of apples and cream.

This impressive dish requires very little prep work, and the whole thing is cooked in just one pan. Serve with toasted slices of crusty bread.