Fennel & sausage rigatoni

I got this recipe from my CSA newsletter, although I didn't actually use any CSA vegetables in it. (I had fennel last week but I made another kohlrabi, fennel, radish salad.) I bought most of these veggies from Whole Foods, though, so it is happy and organic.

First, I got a pot of water started on the stove for the pasta.

Then, I started adding things to my pan in this order:

• 1 lb. mild Italian sausage, casings removed (cook for 5 minutes & break up)
• 1 cup chopped onion & 2 cloves garlic, minced (cook until onion is soft)
• 2 chopped bell peppers & two chopped fennel bulbs (cook until veggies are soft)
• 1/2 cup white wine & 1 cup stock (I used veggie stock; add lid and steam 5 minutes)
• 1/4 cup cream (cook until reduced)
• Sprinkle in 1/4 cup parsley & 1/2 tsp. red pepper flakes
• Drain pasta and toss with veggies
  

The recipe had two caveats: they said to remove the sausage before cooking the vegetables, which I didn't do and it turned out just fine. I also did not reserve 1/4 cup pasta water to thin the sauce, because it was already the consistency I wanted.


It was a wonderfully fragrant and sweet pasta dish, and pretty spicy even though I only bought mild sausage. Dave really liked it, too, and I figured I owed him some good red meat after all the vegetarian dishes we've been eating recently. I would definitely make this again!