Orecchiette with Sausage and Broccoli
November 16th, 2006Another recipe taken from the magazine Fine Cooking.
- 10oz. broccoli crowns, cut into 1 1/2-inch pieces
- 1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
- 3/4 lb. sweet Italian sausage, skinned and crumbled into 1-inch pieces
- 3 cloves garlic, very thinly sliced
- Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
- 8 oil-packed sun-dried tomatoes, drained and cut into thin strips
- 1 Tb chopped fresh thyme
- 3/4 lb. dried orecchiette
- 1 Tb fresh lemon juice
- 3 Tb grated Parmigiano-Reggiano
- 3 scallions, thinly sliced
- Boil a large pot of salted water. Fill a large bowl with cold water. Blanch the broccoli in the boiling water until it softens (1-2 minutes) and then transfer broccoli to the bowl of cold water.
- Heat 2 Tb of the oil in a large skilled over medium-high heat for 1 minute. Add sausage until it browns (about 6 minutes). Remove.
- Put the pasta in the water.
- Reduce the heat under the skillet to medium low and add remaining 2 Tb oil and garlic. Flip pieces until they start to brown (3-4 minutes).
- Raise heat to high and add the drained broccoli. Cook until everything is heated (1 minute). Stire in sun-dried tomatoes and thyme.
- Finish cooking pasta. Reserve 1 cup of pasta water. Drain pasta and add to skillet. Raise heat to high and toss well for 30 seconds. Add some pasta water if it appears dry.
- Stire in lemon juice, parmigiano, and scallions. Add more salt, pepper, or lemon juice to taste.