hot italian sausage

Whether you’re after a night in with your special someone or your sweatpants, this is your pasta: a cozy combination of spicy sausage and squash that’s glossed with nutty, sage-spiked butter and Parmesan. It’s inspired by the cavatelli with sausage and browned sage butter at Frankies 457 Spuntino in Brooklyn — the most ordered dish on dates, according to the owners, but appealing no matter the occasion, according to us. The key to making the dish sing is the unsexy color (brown). You'll want to get a hard sear on the sausage and the squash, and let the butter bubble until brown and toasty. If you’re looking for a vegetarian option, omit the sausage. The meat will be gone, but the comfort won't be.

Pasta With Sausage, Squash and Sage Brown Butter

cupped or tubed pasta, like orecchiette or penne

sausage

extra-virgin olive oil, plus more for the pasta

Salt and pepper

unsalted butter

sage leaves

Parmesan,

Bring a large pot of heavily salted water to a boil. Meanwhile, cook the sausage: In a sauté pan or skillet large enough to hold all the pasta, add the sausage and enough cold water to cover. Set over medium-high heat, then remove from the heat when the water hits a boil, about 8 to 10 minutes.

Transfer the sausage to a cutting board and cut into 1/2-inch coins. Dry out the pan and return it to the stove.

In the same pan, heat the olive oil over high until nearly smoking. Add the sausage and cook, flipping once, until dark brown on both sides, 5 to 7 minutes. Remove the sausage to a paper towel-lined plate, then reduce the heat to medium. Add the squash and a pinch of salt to the pan. Let cook, stirring briefly and scraping up any browned bits on the bottom of the pan, until browned, 5 to 7 minutes.

While the squash is browning, add pasta to boiling water, and cook to al dente according to package directions. Reserve 1 cup of the pasta cooking water, and drain the pasta.

When the squash is nicely browned, add the butter and sage and cook until the butter is golden, nutty smelling and foaming, just a minute or two, then immediately remove the pan from the heat and add back the sausage.

Add the pasta to the pan and mix with the brown-butter sauce (if the pasta has cooled off quite a bit, return the pan to low heat while you combine everything). Stir in the cheese, then add pasta water as needed to smooth the sauce. Adjust with salt and pepper, and serve with extra Parmesan, if you like.

Fresh sheets of pasta are layered with a hot Italian sausage rag&ugrave;, pesto ricotta and two pounds of mozzarella for the ultimate lasagna.

Sausage-Ricotta Lasagna Recipe

(20 ounces) 00 flour,

eggs, egg

salt

olive oil

garlic cloves, thinly sliced

yellow onion, finely chopped

red wine

whole peeled tomatoes, crushed by hand

oregano

thyme

salt and black pepper,

(2 pounds) whole-milk ricotta

basil pesto

Parmesan

lemon juice

lemon zest

black pepper

eggs

oil,

mozzarella,

Make the dough: In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the dough hook attachment, combine all the dough ingredients and mix until a dough comes together, then transfer to a clean work surface and knead until a smooth dough forms, 3 to 5 minutes. Divide into 2 pieces and shape each into a disk. Wrap in plastic and let rest in the refrigerator overnight.

Meanwhile, make the ragù: In a medium saucepan, heat the olive oil over medium-high heat. Add the sausage and cook, using a wooden spoon to break up the sausage, until lightly caramelized, 4 to 5 minutes. Add the garlic and onions, and cook until the onions are translucent, 5 to 6 minutes. Pour in the wine and stir, scraping up any browned bits from the bottom of the pan.

Add the tomatoes, oregano and thyme, and bring to a simmer. Reduce the heat to medium and cook, stirring occasionally until the tomatoes have broken down and the liquid has thickened, 30 minutes. Season with salt and pepper. Let cool, then transfer to an airtight container and refrigerate overnight.

Make the pesto ricotta: In a large bowl, whisk together all the ricotta ingredients until smooth. Transfer to an airtight container and let refrigerate overnight.

The next day, assemble the lasagna: Preheat the oven to 350° and grease a 9-by-13-inch baking dish. Cut each disk of dough in half. With plenty of flour on hand for dusting, use a rolling pin and a pasta roller to roll the pasta dough out into ⅙-inch-thick sheets. Cut each sheet into 10-inch pieces, then set aside on a floured baking sheet layered with parchment paper.

In the baking dish, spread a quarter of the ragù on the bottom. Place 3 to 4 sheets of pasta dough across the bottom, overlapping slightly to cover. Spread a third of the pesto ricotta over the sheets and layer with a quarter of the sliced mozzarella, then arrange more pasta sheets to cover. Repeat the process of layering, alternating the ragù and the ricotta, 4 more times, for a total of 6 layers of pasta. Top the final layer of pasta with the remaining quarter of the ragù and the mozzarella slices.

Cover the lasagna with greased foil and place on a baking sheet. Bake covered for 45 minutes, then remove the foil and continue to bake until the cheese is golden brown and bubbling, 30 minutes more. Let cool for 20 minutes before slicing and serving.

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Top 2 hot italian sausage recipes from across the web

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Pasta With Sausage, Squash and Sage...

Sausage-Ricotta Lasagna Recipe

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