We saw this dish featured on one of the old Martha Stewart magazines that I collected, and thought that we should try it. And it was definitely worth it! It was simple enough to make on a weeknight, but has fancy enough flavors to impress company with.
Pasta with Sausage and Escarole
Yield: 4 servings, prep time: 15 mins, total: 45 mins
Coarse Salt
1 lb rigatoni or other tubular pasta
2 tbsp extra-virgin olive oil
2 garlic cloves, minced (~ 1 tbsp)
1 lb hot Italian sausage, remove from casting and crumbled
1 cup dry white wine
1 cup heavy cream
1/4 cup finely chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley
2 tbsp finely chopped fresh rosemary
1/2 tsp crushed red pepper flakes
Freshly ground black pepper
1 large head escarole, cut horizontally into thirds and stemmed
(Spinach can be substituted for this)
Parmesan cheese, for shaving
1. Bring a large pot of water to boil. Add salt and paste, cook 2-3 minutes less than package instruction. Drain pasta.
2. Meanwhile, in a Dutch oven, heat oil over medium heat. Add garlic, cook, stirring, until fragrant, about 1 minute.
3. Add sausage , cook, stirring, until cooked through, about 6 minutes.
4. Pour in wine; stir to deglaze pan. Add cream, parsley, rosemary, and red-pepper flakes. Season with salt & pepper. Bring to a simmer.
5. Add escarole, cook, stirring occasionally, until just wilted 8-10 mins.
6. Stir pasta into skillet, cook until cream has just started to thicken and pasta is al dante, about 3 minutes. Garnish with cheese, and serve.
