Rigatoni with Roasted Peppers and Sausage

Right now, in my kitchen, there is sauce bubbling on the stove. And it is rich and good. The cutting board is green with parsley and basil, ready to be chopped, and two good hunks of hard Italian cheese – Parmigiano and Romano – are waiting to get grated. A bottle of zinfandel has been uncorked and a piece of torn baguette is slathered with butter every time I pop in to check on dinner’s progress. The only foreseeable trouble is snacking too much on all my favorite things before the sauce is done. Be patient. It’s a perfect night indeed to be cozy at home and cooking. I suggest trying this soon. It is simple yet effective for a cool fall evening.

Rigatoni with Roasted Peppers and Sausage

Ingredients

• 1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
• 2 red bell peppers, roasted, skins removed, seeded and thinly sliced
• 1 lb ground hot Italian sausage
• 1/2 pound ground beef
• 1 small onion, diced
• 3 minced cloves of garlic
• 1 package baby bella mushrooms, chopped
• 2 Fresno peppers, diced
• 1 tablespoon tomato paste
• 1 teaspoon anchovy paste
• 1/2 cup spicy red wine
• 1/2 cup beef broth
• 1 28 oz can diced tomatoes
• rigatoni, or other tubular pasta
• cheese, parsley, basil

Method

In a large Dutch oven, brown the meat in olive oil, then add onions, garlic, hot peppers, and mushrooms, season with salt and pepper and cook until vegetables have softened. Measure in the tomato and anchovy pastes and let cook for a minute, then add wine and broth, tomatoes and roasted peppers. Cover and cook for thirty minutes; meanwhile boil the pasta to preferred doneness. A big, fat rigatoni captures this meaty sauce nicely. Don’t forget to add some of the pasta’s cooking liquid to the finished product. Garnish with green herbs and good cheese. Serve with wine and bread, and be happy.

Tagged as: dinner, meat, pasta, peppers, sauce

About the Author: Jillian Bedell

Jillian grew up in Connecticut, went to university in Boston, college in New Haven, did some post-grad soul searching in New York, exiled herself to Mexico, married her longtime sweetheart, and lived in a house on the ocean. She suspected Maine might be the perfect place to raise a family, so she came back home to New England two years ago. Now a mom to Violet Maeve and living in Rockland, where she hopes to settle for a good, long while, Jillian reads, writes, walks, and practices Nia, when not watching Malcolm photograph sandwiches.