posted by Marian C Brown 04-21-99 4:23 PM
Pasta with Italian Sausage, Tomato and Herbs
1 pound hot Italian sausage (about 4)
4 cups tri-coloured corkscrew pasta
2 to 3 tsp. vegetable oil
1 large onion, diced
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 can (28 oz./796 ml.) diced tomato, undrained
1 can (5-1/2 oz.) tomato paste
2 tsp. dried basil leaves
1 tsp. dried oregano leaves
1/2 cup chopped fresh parsley (optional)
pepper to taste
freshly grated Parmesan cheese
In a medium skillet, cook sausage over medium heat until no longer pink in centre; about 15-20 minutes, turning every 5 minutes. Drain well; cut into thin round slices.
In a large skillet, over medium heat cook onion in oil until tender, about 5 minutes. Add garlic, cook one minute more. Add tomatoes, tomato paste, basil and oregano; simmer 15 minutes.
Cook pasta in a large pot. When pasta is almost done, add sausage to tomato sauce and heat until warmed through (5-7 minutes). Drain pasta and return to pot.
Pour sauce over cooked pasta; stir to coat pasta.
Blend in parsley and pepper. Garnish with Parmesan cheese at table.
Serves 4. You can probably stretch this to 6 people if you serve with a salad and garlic bread.
NOTE: the sauce and sausage can be made several hours ahead (keep separate and refrigerated) and reheated together while the pasta is cooking.