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Broccolini and Sausage Pasta
Italian-style broccolini and sausage pasta. Can be served warm as a main, or cold as a side pasta salad.
Ingredients
- 3 hot (or mild) italian sausage, removed from casings
- 1 bunch broccolini
- 1 bunch asparagus
- 75 g frozen peas
- 250 g orecchiette
- 3 cloves garlic, crushed
- 1 anchovy fillet (oil packed)
- Zest of one lemon, and half its juice
- 100 mL white wine
- Or 100 mL water + the other half of the lemon's juice
- 40 g grated parmesan cheese
- Olive oil
- Salt and pepper
Steps
- Bring a medium pot of heavily salted water to a boil. Set a separate medium pot or dutch oven over medium-low heat.
- Chop broccolini and asparagus into 1 cm pieces.
- Keep the heads of the broccolini and asparagus slightly larger, as they're more tender
- Blanch the broccolini in the water until just tender, 2-3 minutes. Remove with a spider and set aside.
- Blanch the asparagus in the same water until just tender, 1-2 minutes. Remove and set with the broccolini.
- Start cooking the orecchiette in the same water according to package directions. It should take about the same time as cooking the sausage (below), but if you're slow start the pasta later.
- For eating warm, cook the pasta until al dente or desired level of doneness.
- For eating cold, cook the pasta an additional 2 minutes.
- Add a drizzle of olive oil to the other pot or dutch oven. Add the sausage (removed from its casing) and bring the temperature up to medium. Crumble and brown the sausage into small pieces (about the size of the divot in the orecchiette).
- Add the crushed garlic and anchovy fillet, cooking for about 30 seconds. The anchovy should mostly dissolve or break down into a paste.
- Add white wine (or water). Deglaze the pan, and cook off the alcohol for one minute.
- By this point there should be ~3 minutes left on the pasta. Add 150-200 mL of pasta water to the sausage pot and stir vigorously to emulsify.
- Turn off the heat on the sausage pot. Add broccolini, asparagus, and frozen peas.
- Drain the pasta, reserving another 200 mL of cooking water for adjusting consistency as needed.
- Add the pasta to the remaining pot along with lemon zest and juice. Mix thoroughly.
- Add the grated parmesan in two batches, stirring until melted and well emulsified.
- Add reserved pasta water as needed to adjust the consistency. For eating cold later, aim for slightly more liquid as it will absorb later in the fridge.
- Season with salt and pepper as needed.
- Additional salt may be required if eating cold, as cold temperatures tend to dull flavours.