Tonight, we were confronted with no fresh meat and only some leftover grape tomatoes and fennel in the crisper drawer that we'd intended to use over the weekend. I also remembered there were some homemade pork sausage links in the freezer. Believe it or not, this was basically all I needed to put together a really tasty dinner.
Roasted Tomato and Fennel Pasta with Homemade Sausage - serves 2
about 1/4 box of dry pasta (rotini in this case)
half pint of grape tomatoes
half a fennel bulb
one pork sausage link
1/2 cup grated parmesan
1 clove garlic
olive oil
salt + pepper
Trim the outer portions and the stemmy part of the fennel, and slice into half-moon shapes. Toss with tomatoes, some olive oil, salt and pepper in a roasting pan and cook for 20 minutes until everything starts to brown.
Meanwhile, cook pasta in generously salted water, according to package directions, reserving 1 cup of cooking liquid.
While pasta is boiling and veggies are roasting, take the sausage out of the casing and cook, crumbing in oil until browned. Drain on paper towels and add minced garlic to pan and cook 30 seconds or until fragrant (longer and it will burn). Add roasted vegetables to pan, followed by 1/2 cup of reserved pasta water. Simmer for a couple of minutes, scraping any browned bits up from the pan. When pasta is ready, drain and add to pan. Add another 1/2 cup of cooking liquid if the earlier addition has cooked down significantly. Add parmesan, stir and serve immediately. The cheese will thicken the cooking liquid, which, seasoned with the vegetables, coats the pasta with a nice, creamy sauce.
