That is what Josh said about this pasta: "Restaurant Quality." It is one of Mark Sorenson's and it was, as mentioned, very good. A lot of it had to do with the sausage: Isnernio's. I have had the hot Italian pork and the Italian chicken, and they are both delicious. The spice blend is such that your dish really needs nothing for flavor other than the sausage. Fennel seed is another one of those secret ingredients, I think.
So, you brown your sausage in a little olive oil, take it out and saute your onion and garlic, then pour some dry red wine and let it boil away a bit. Throw in your crushed tomatoes and put the sausage back. Simmer for 30 minutes, then add the arugula, basil and oregano to wilt.
The herbs go in at the end and add a lovely freshness. Why, yes! Thank you for noticing! I did chiffonade the basil. I did not do the same for the oregano - too small. Speaking of which, one should always watch her step with fresh oregano because it packs quite a punch. A heavy hand with that stuff is not desirable. And don't even get me started on marjoram. Wooeee.
Did you know that "chiffonade" means "made of rags"?
Funny, if you have ever seen Mario Batali's show on the food network, he generally disdains anything French. So, when many recipes would tell you to chiffonade, he says to break the basil up roughly, with your fingers, and (paraphrasing) "there's no need to make it look French."
I heart your blog!! :) Thank you for explaining the receipes and listing them when you have time. Once question...where do you get this wonderful sausage??
ReplyDeleteI have found this sausage at Safeway and Trader Joe's.
ReplyDelete