Monday, 11 August 2014

Penne with Rainbow Chard and Farmer's Market Sausage

 There is a farmers market by my house that I never have a chance to go to because it finishes before I get home from work. I've been getting off work early this week because I'm covering for someone who is on vacation, so I got to go. My mom and I went down and spent way too much money... but we got some great stuff!!

I saw rainbow chard, which to be honest I've never used before, and got really excited. It was just so pretty and colorful. So we bought it. We also got the most delicious sausages ever. They were pork sausages but according to the vendor they were fashioned after wild boar sausages... whatever that means. But seriously, they were so good. And I will return and get more next chance I get!

Ingredients:

  • 250 g rigatoni or you could use penne
  • 1/2 bunch of chard, stems removed and leaves sliced
  • 3 italian or pork and fennel sausages
  • 2 tbsp pine nuts
  • olive oil
  • 1/2 tbsp dried oregano
  • 1/2 wineglass of white wine
  • good handful of grated parmesan... lots of it. And more to top 
  • small knob of butter
  • salt & pepper

Instructions:
Bring a pot of salted water to the boil and cook the rigatoni according to instructions.  Reserve about 1/2 cup of the pasta water when you drain the pasta to use for the sauce. While the pasta is cooking heat a pan on medium heat and toast the pine nuts until lightly golden.  Take them out of the pan and set aside.  Wipe the pan with a paper towel to clean remnants from pine nuts.
Heat a small splash of olive oil and squeeze the sausage meat out of their skins into the pan and with a wooden spoon break them up into small pieces.  Cook until the sausage meat has browned. Add the oregano, stir for a minute and then add the white wine and cook until half has evaporated.
Add the chard and cook until wilted and then add the pine nuts. The pasta should be done by now.  Drain it and throw it into the pan, stir through sausage and chard.  Add the butter and parmesan.  Stir through and then add a splash of the pasta water and stir through.  This will mix with the parmesan and butter to create a silky sauce.  If you need more moisture just add more of the water.  Taste and season with salt & pepper if necessary.
Serve with extra parmesan to sprinkle over the top

1 comment:

  1. This looks amazing! I've always wanted to try rainbow chard. Please come over and make this for me for dinner.

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