Back about 10 years ago, I went on a kick of buying Martha Stewart's Everyday Food magazine. I saved the recipes I liked but never really got around to making many of them.
About 5 years ago, as I was cleaning out all my cooking magazines and recipes, I came across this simple recipe. What started out as an experimental dinner has become a family favorite. Our family goes back and forth between Rigatoni with Sausage and Parsley and Epicurious' Penne with Sausage and Tomato Sauce. They are both great recipes that start with a sausage base. I find we eat the rigatoni with sausage and parley during the warmer months as it is a lighter meal and wonderful with freshly cut parsley from the garden.
When we talked about what people liked best about this recipe, it was the taste of sweet onions with the sausage. The parsley brings a clean taste to the palette with the light broth and parmesan cheese. The meal is quick and easy and never yield leftovers. It's too good to put away.
It paid off, gathering all the recipes from Everyday Food. I just wished I had experimented sooner.
Ingredients:
1 pound of bulk spicy Italian sausage, remove from casings and crumbled
2 medium red onions, halved and slices 1/4 inch thick
1 can (14.5 ounce) chicken broth
1 pound of rigatoni, cook according to package instructions
3 cups of packed fresh Italian parsley leaves
1/2 cup of parmesan cheese
Coarse salt and ground pepper for seasoning
Preparation:
1. In a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat, cook sausage until browned, breaking apart large pieces with a wooden spoon, about 5 minutes. Reduce heat to medium. Add onions; cook stirring occasionally until onions are caramelized and sausage is cooked through, 10-12 minutes. Add broth; cook until heated through, 3-5 minutes.
2. Meanwhile, in a large pot of boiling salted water, cook 1 pound of rigatoni (or other short tubular pasta) until al dente, according to package instructions. Drain; return to pot.
3. Add sausage mixture, parsley, and Parmesan cheese to the pasta, toss to combine. Season with coarse salt and ground pepper.
This dish serves 4-6 people.