This fennel sausage pasta recipe is rich, delicious and so comforting. Italian sausage and al-dente pasta bathed in a flavourful creamy tomato sauce.
Ingredients
- 250 g dried pasta (I use short mafaldine)
- 1 tablespoon sundried tomato oil (or olive oil) (notes 1)
- 1 medium brown onion diced (1 cup)
- 1 medium fennel bulb finely diced (¾ cup)
- 1 teaspoon fennel seeds
- ½ cup sliced sundried tomatoes not packed
- 450 g Italian sausage (mild or hot) casings removed (1lb)
- 1 tablespoon plain flour (all purp flour) (notes 1)
- 1 ½ cups chicken stock (chicken broth)
- 1 tablespoon tomato paste (notes 1)
- ½ cup thickened cream (heavy cream)
- ½ teaspoon salt or more to taste
- 3 cups Tuscan kale ribbons (or baby spinach leaves) lightly packed
- parmesan cheese finely grated to serve
For best results, always weigh ingredients where a weight is provided
Equipment
- Large pot for cooking the pasta
- Deep, large frying pan or skillet, or dutch oven I prefer non stick, you may just need a little more oil if it's not
Instructions
- Bring a large pot of water to the boil (in readiness for the pasta). If it boils before the end of step 2, turn it off until needed.
- Heat oil over medium heat. Add the onion and diced fennel. Cook 4-5 mins until translucent.
- At this point bring the pasta water back to a boil and add the pasta. Cook for around 10 minutes until al dente or according to packet instructions.
- Meanwhile, add the fennel seeds and sun dried tomatoes to the onion pan. Cook 1-2 minutes.
- Increase the heat to medium-high. Break up the sausages as you add them to the pan. Cook, turning regularly, until the sausage is just cooked through.
- Sprinkle over the flour and mix well. Cook, stirring regularly for another 2 minutes.
- Add the tomato paste and chicken stock and bring to a simmer, stirring regularly, for 2-3 minutes until it thickens slightly.
- When the pasta is done, reserve ½ cup of pasta water, then drain the pasta until required.
- Add the cream, salt and kale to the sausage mixture. Stir well and cook another minute or two until the kale wilts a little.
- Mix in the drained pasta and spoon onto plates. Add parmesan to the top and serve.
- Please take a moment to leave a comment & rating. It's appreciated and so helpful.
Notes
- Tablespoons: I use a standard Australian 20ml tablespoon (equal to 4 teaspoons). Check yours before measuring.
- Sausage casings are easy to remove. Just run a sharp knife down the length of the sausage, then peel away the casing and discard.
- Nutrition details are approximate only - scroll below the recipe to find the full nutritional information.
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Nutrition information is approximate only and derived from an online calculator. The brands you use and any changes you make may cause variations.
