Sausage and Fennel Pasta
I can’t remember now how this pasta dish first came about, I think I made it up! It’s always been a hit with the children and so I’ve been making it for years and we all still love it. I now make it with gluten free pasta and vegetarian sausages and it’s still just as good. Of course, when I came to make it to take a photo, I didn’t have any fusilli or penne pasta in the cupboard, so in the picture it’s made with tagliatelle. I’m certain there are rules - unknown to me - about which pasta should be used for which dish, but I found the tagliatelle to work just as well and had no complaints from the family!
Perfect for supper on a chilly evening, there’s something about the flavours (the liquorice of the fennel, the slight heat from the chilli) that evoke autumn, bonfires and that feeling of contentment from getting cosy when the nights start drawing in. Best of all, it can be on the table in under half an hour so is a great quick dinner to make at the end of a busy day.
Serves 4, cooking time 25 minutes
Ingredients
400g pasta (I generally use fusilli or penne)
Vegetable oil
6 (vegetarian) sausages
1 onion, chopped
2 garlic cloves, crushed
2 tsp fennel seeds
1 tsp oregano
½ tsp chilli flakes
400g tin chopped tomatoes
1 tbsp tomato puree
Salt and pepper
Method
Put the pasta on to cook for approximately 8 minutes, or until al dente
In a large pan or wok heat a little oil and fry the sausages until cooked through then remove from the pan and set aside.
Add a little more oil to the pan and gently and slowly fry the onion on a low heat until soft and sweet, before adding the garlic, herbs and spices and cook, stirring, for another minute.
Tip in the tomatoes, half fill the can with water and add to the pan along with the tomato puree. Cut the sausages into bite sized slices and add them too (I snip them straight into the pan using scissors). Season with salt and pepper.
Let it simmer and reduce for ten minutes and then stir the cooked pasta into the pan and heat through.
Share out between large four bowls and grate some cheese or sprinkle parmesan over the top. Serve with vegetables or a green salad, or for ultimate ease add some frozen peas to the pan at the same time as the tomatoes.