Sausage & Mushroom Rigatoni in a White Wine Cream Sauce

This was crafted after a very specific request from Cameron for a pasta with sausage in it. Sometimes you just crave a big ol bowl of pasta. Especially after a 36 hour shift. This recipe can be made in 30 minutes or less, making it a great week night go to. It also is just as good heated back up the next day or two–depending on how big your servings are. I swear, I make meals that should last at least 3 days, but Cameron needs a lot more food than I do, which generally leads to us maybe having 1 or 2 servings left tops.

The mushrooms and asparagus were a perfect combo for the italian sausage. I must say that generally I am not a big sausage fan, but in this recipe it worked very well.

For the wine in this recipe I recommend doing a Sauvignon Blanc. Doesn’t need to be anything too fancy.

Ingredients:

-1 box (or bag) of Rigatoni noodles

-1 T olive oil

-3 Italian sausage links, casing removed and sliced

-1 cup mushrooms, sliced

-1 cup asparagus, chopped

-3 sprigs thyme

-3 cloves garlic, minced

-1 cup white wine

-1/2 cup heavy cream

-1/4 cup Parmesan cheese

-1 tsp red pepper flakes, plus more to taste

-1 tsp salt, plus more to taste

-1 tsp pepper, plus more to taste

-Parsley & Parmesan cheese for garnish

Directions:

1. Cook pasta according to package instructions. Be sure to reserve 1-2 cups of pasta water when draining.

2. In a large skillet, heat 1 T olive oil over medium high heat. Add sausage and cook until browned (~8-10 min).

3. Add in mushrooms, asparagus, and the sprigs of thyme. Cook for ~3 minutes, then add in garlic cloves and stir frequently (so that the garlic does not burn) for another few minutes.

4. Pour in white wine and cook until reduced by half. Then add in heavy cream & 1/2 cup of the reserved pasta water. Add more water if needed while cooking. Remove thyme springs.

5. Stir in parmesan cheese as well as salt, pepper, & red pepper flakes. Finally, add your pasta and toss until combined.

6. Serve warm and garnish with some fresh parsley and extra parmesan cheese if desired.