Designing and modifying recipes is a creative outlet for me. During these long pandemic months, I have turned to my kitchen more and more as a place to balance myself and find my flow. I love to take an existing recipe and then build on it to blend in layers of flavor, experimenting with fresh herbs, wine, and different cooking techniques.
I found a recipe for an orecchiette pasta dish in a magazine, and after I made it I realized that while it was a good starting place it could use some improvements.
The original recipe was a one-pan pasta dish. I do love the simplicity of one-pan dishes, but it is not the best approach for all pastas, particularly ones like Orecchiette that can take longer to cook. Sausage can be salty, and the orecchiette soaks up all that salt in a way that can overwhelm the other flavors. When I revamped this recipe I chose to cook the orecchiette separately until it was al dente and then add it to the dish.
The second change I made was to cook the meat first and then deglaze the pan with wine. Deglazing is a spectacular way to add flavor into the sauce that you would otherwise miss.
And last, I added some additional ingredients for layers of flavor; like fresh basil for peppery sweetness and mushrooms for umami. I also modified others like replacing onions with shallots – which I find to be more delicate and sweet – a nice balance to the mushrooms.
I am very pleased with this revamped version and decided to share it with you. Open up a bottle of good wine and enjoy creating this dish in your kitchen – I hope the experience brings you some joy like it did me.
Ingredients
- 2 Tbsp. olive oil
- 2/3 cup shallots – thinly sliced
- 3 cloves of garlic – thinly sliced
- 1 cup diced portabello mushrooms
- 14 oz can of diced tomatoes
- 1 pound sweet Italian sausage, casings removed
- 3 cups low-sodium chicken broth
- 1 1/4 cups orecchiette pasta
- 1 cup roughly chopped fresh basil leaves
- 1 cup roughly chopped argula
- 14/ cup finely grated Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese
- 1 bottle of your favorite red wine (a splash for deglaze and the rest for dinner!)
- Heat 1 Tbsp oil in a large skillet over medium heat. I use a stainless steel pan, heat it first, then add the oil and then immediately after add the meat so that the oil does not have time to smoke.
- Add the sausage and break into small bits while it is cooking – stirring regularly so that it cooks evenly.
- While the sausage is cooking – bring another medium-sized saucepan filled with water to boil and add the orecchiette pasta – allow to cook for 8 minutes, then remove and drain in a colander.
- When the sausage is cooked through and no pink is remaining, remove the sausage from the pan. Then use a splash of the red wine (2-3 Tbsp) to deglaze the pan. I generally remove the skillet from the burner during the deglazing process and then add it back to the burner when I’m ready for the next step.
- Add the second Tbsp oil to the pan, then immediately follow with the shallots and garlic. Stir these continuously for 2-3 minutes – just enough to release the oils and flavor of the garlic – then add the mushrooms. Continue to stir for another 3 minutes.
- Add in the fresh basil and stir continuously for 30 seconds.
- Add the can of tomatoes – do not drain first – add all the liquid into the skillet, followed by 1.5 cups of the low sodium chicken broth and the sausage. Stir for 2 minutes.
- Next, add in the orecchiette from step 3 along with the other 1.5 cups of the chicken broth. Allow to cook for 5 minutes – stirring frequently so that the sauce and pasta do not stick to the pan.
- Stir in the arugula and then remove from heat.
- Ladle the pasta into your serving dishes and then sprinkle with 2 Tbsp of the grated cheese.
