Farfalle with Sausage, Tomatoes, and Cream

I have a really bad habit of going to the grocery store without a list. I tend to buy whatever looks good at the time, as well as what is on sale, and what I "think" I have on my list of things of cook. This results in me having really random stuff that doesn't go together and having to call for pizza delivery after I get home from the store and am starving. I went through my cabinet and freezer this morning and found many of the ingredients below. Thanks to the lovely internet, I was able to find a recipe that contained many of the ingredients I had on hand. I just had to buy a can of tomatoes and some heavy cream. Yes, you read correctly; I HAD to buy heavy cream. The internet told me to. This turned out to be a really great dish that I will definitely make again. I used hot sausage instead of sweet, and it was delicious.

Ingredients:
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 pound sweet Italian sausages, casings removed
1/2 teaspoon dried crushed red pepper
1 cup chopped onion
3 garlic cloves, minced
1 28-ounce can crushed tomatoes with added puree
1/2 cup whipping cream
1 pound farfalle (bow-tie pasta)
1/2 cup (packed) chopped fresh basil
Freshly grated Pecorino Romano cheese

Go ahead and chop up the onion and garlic. I would also start boiling the water for the pasta. Follow the directions for al dente pasta and save 1 cup of the reserved water for later.


Heat oil in heavy large skillet over medium-high heat.

Add sausage and crushed red pepper. Sauté until sausage is no longer pink, breaking up with back of fork, about 5 minutes.

Oh, yes, you'll want a glass of wine. Red, white, who cares? This is a lovely Bordeaux that I bought over the weekend.

Add onion and garlic; sauté until onion is tender and sausage is browned, about 3 minutes longer.

See? All nice and brown.

Add tomatoes and cream. Reduce heat to low and simmer until sausage mixture thickens, about 3 minutes. Season to taste with salt and pepper.

Add the cooked pasta to the pan.

Toss over medium-low heat until sauce coats pasta, adding reserved liqued from pasta by 1/4 cupfulls as needed.

Transfer pasta to dish. Sprinkle with basil and cheese. And serve. Look how pretty!!!