Chickpea Pasta Pugliese
Weeknight pasta at its finest - a cross between classic pugliese and pasta Bella (a dish I made up in my early twenties and convinced my father to put on our restaurant’s menu). It’s cheap, quick and really really good. I use @eatbanza pasta cause it has more fiber and protein than traditional pasta - and since this is a 1:1:1 pasta to meat to veggies dish, i don’t mind the alternative pasta. (And pasta dish when the sauce is the star, like The Sauce, I prefer classic semolina pasta) Here’s what you need:
INGREDIENTS
1 lbs spicy Italian sausage, removed from casing, broken into bite size pieces
1 onion, small dice
1 bunch broccoli rabe
6+ cloves garlic, minced
1/4 cup olive oil, plus more if needed
@eatbanza penne
Salt
Red pepper flakes
INSTRUCTIONS
1. Bring a large pot of water to a boil
2. In batches, on medium high heat, brown sausages, about 5 minutes on one side and 3 on the other. Remove from pan and set aside.
3. If excess grease, remove all but 2 tbs, if not add a little extra olive oil. Turn heat down to medium and sautéed onions until lightly browned making sure you pick up any of those yummy sausage bits stuck to the bottom of the pan. About 8 minutes.
4. Meanwhile get your broccoli rabe and a big bowl of ice cold water. Bring both over to stove top where water is boiling. Generously add salt to water , then blanch the broccoli rabe but dunking it in boiling water for 30 seconds. Remove and instantly shock the broccoli rabe in the cold water. Strain and chop into bite size pieces and set aside.
5. Refresh pot with water and bring to a boil. Add a generous amount of salt and couple glugs of olive oil. Add pasta to the pot and cook till al dente, 8-10 minutes depending on what type of pasta. Save one cup of pasta water then drain.
6. Once onions are browned set aside with sausage. Add 1/4 olive oil, once shimmering add minced garlic. Once you can smell the garlic, 1-2 minutes it’s done.
7. Add the broccoli rabe, warm through then add onions, sausage and pasta. Toss everything together so fully coated with olive oil and garlic. Add pasta water about 1/4 cup at a time until a nice glossy sauce starts to take shape. Add a dash of red pepper flakes