Possibly one of every “Food Lovers” favorite foods is pasta. The ways of preparing pasta are endless. Pasta, contrary to popular belief is not unhealthy. What is unhealthy is eating large quantities with lots of rich sauces. The pasta alone is not bad for you. Besides, everything in moderation is key to being healthy. If you are tying to watch your weight, it is detrimental to deny yourself completely of some things you love that are not totally healthy. You will just one day go off and indulge killing your healthy eating. And Diets don’t work…it’s a way of life and everything in moderation. So this particular dish would go on the once in a while kind of dish you would eat. It’s a rich very flavorful dish that has a few more calories than what you would normally have if watching your health. However, that means either you eat less or serve it as a side with your main dish and have just a small portion.
Bow Tie Pasta with Sausage, Fennel, Cream, Reggiano and Tomato Puree
Ingredients 1-lb bow tie pasta 1 cup heavy cream 1/2 cup freshly grated parmigiano reggiano plus extra to garnish 1/2 cup frozen peas, thawed 1 lb Italian mild or hot sausage (your preference) casing removed 1-2 tablespoons freshly ground fennel seed (add slowly and add more to adjust to your taste) 1/3 cup whole plum tomatoes pureed with juice 1/4 cup minced shallots 1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes 3 tablespoons fresh chopped Italian parsley 1 tablespoon olive oil Salt & Pepper In a large non-stick saute pan add 1-tablespoon olive oil turning burner to medium. Add sausage and break up with wooden spoon. Saute until fully cooked. Remove from pan leaving drippings in pan and allow to cool then placing in a Cuisinart and pulse until broken into small pieces. Add shallots and saute for 3-minutes or until soft. Add red pepper flakes and stir. Add tomato puree, pinch of salt and saute for 2-minutes. Add heavy cream and increase heat to boil stirring constantly and then reduce heat until it coats the back of a spoon. Add sausage, fennel and turn burner to low. Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil adding pasta. Boil for 1 1/2 minutes less than package suggests for al-dente. Drain pasta reserving 1-cup of pasta water. Increase sauce to medium heat adding regianno and stirring for 1-minute then add pasta to sauce. Add peas, and parsley and when pasta is to your taste serve in a bowl with grated reggiano and garnish with chopped parsley.
