by Jennifer G of Hidden Valley/Hanson Ranch
Serves 6 to 8 as a main dish.
Ingredients:
• 1 ½ lbs Italian sausage
• 3 cups chopped onions (about 1 ½ large onions)
• 4 garlic cloves, minced
• 2 tsp dried oregano
• ½ tsp crushed red pepper flakes
• 2 tbsp tomato paste
• 28 oz petite-diced tomatoes
• 2 bay leaves
• 6 cups chicken stock
• 8 oz fusilli pasta (our favourite is the mini lasagna noodles from Bulk Barn)
• ½ cup finely chopped fresh basil leaves
• Salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste (I didn’t add any salt because the sausage, tomatoes, broth, and cheese were salty enough).
• 8 oz ricotta
• ½ cup grated Parmesan cheese
• Pinch of freshly ground pepper
• 2 cups shredded mozzarella cheese
Instructions:
1. Sauté meat in a large pot over medium-high heat until browned, about five minutes. Adding oil to the pan wasn’t necessary because the sausage gives off enough fat on its own.
2. Add the onions and garlic to the pot and cook until the onions have softened, about five minutes.
3. Stir in the dried oregano, crushed red pepper and the tomato paste. Cook the tomato paste until it has browned slightly and evenly coated the meat and onions, three to four minutes.
4. Add in the diced tomatoes, bay leaves, and chicken broth, then turn down the heat to medium-low and simmer 30 minutes.
5. Crank the heat back up to medium-high and bring to a boil before adding the pasta. Cook until al dente according to the package directions (probably eight to ten minutes).
6. Whilst the pasta is cooking, mix the ricotta, parmesan, and pepper together in a little bowl.
7. Once the pasta is al dente, spoon a little bit of the ricotta mixture in each serving bowl, then ladle the soup over. Sprinkle with chopped basil and the shredded mozzarella.
Note: We like to cook the pasta separately and add it to each bowl when you serve it, so the noodles don’t soak up too much of the broth.
Note 2: Leftovers freeze well! Freeze single servings without the pasta. Thaw, warm up on the stove and add in pasta of choice!
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