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Title: Rigatoni w/ Pink Sauce
Categories: Italian Pasta Sauce
Yield: 4 Servings
| 4 | Italian sausages | |
| 1 | lg | Spanish onion; coarsely |
| . chopped | ||
| 4 | cl | Garlic; peeled & cut into 2 |
| . or 3 pieces each | ||
| 2 | tb | Vegetable oil |
| 1/3 | c | Vodka |
| 1 | cn | Tomatoes; 28oz, crushed |
| 3/4 | c | Half-and-half |
| Salt & pepper to taste | ||
| 1 | lb | Rigatoni |
| Basil leaves & black olives | ||
| . optional for garnish |
1. First, deal with the sausages. Prick the casing in a number of places with a fork, to let the fat drain out. To eook them conventiorlally, saute in a tiny bit of vegetable oil, enough so that they don't stick, until they're browned and cooked all the way through, 10 minutes ar so. If you have a microwave, put them in a microwave-safe pan or on a plate with 2 paper towels underneath and 2 on top. In my microwave they take about 8 minutes, give or take. They may not brown very well, but it doesn't matter, as you're going to put them in the food processar anyway.
2. Saute the onion and garlic in the vegetable oil in a good-size fry pan until they're both softened but not browned. Add the vodka and tomatoes and boil away for about 20 minutes until the liquid is 2 reduced and you're left with a big mess of tomatoey glop. (You won't want to boil at your stove's highest heat, or tomato will get all over the wall - a rolling bubble is more like it.) If you're going to be serving dinner right away, this is a good time to put salted water on to boil for the rigatoni.
3. Put the sausages into a food processor and pulse until they're the texture of hamburger, then take them out and put them somewhere. Now put the tomato glop into the food processor and pulse that, too, until the mixture is smooth. Put it back into the pan and stir in the chopped-up sausage. Now add the half-and-half a little at a time, as you keep stirring. The mixture will begin to turn pink, which is what you want. The texture should not be runny but have some body to it, so that it really adheres to the pasta. It varies a little each time but 1/2 to 3/4 cup half-and-half, give or take a little ought to do it. Keep it hot. Add salt and freshly ground pepper to taste, toss together with the rigatoni, and serve, garnished with basil leaves and black olives, if desired.
Makes 4 servings.
** Newsday, Queens, New York -- Dining & Food section -- 27 Sep 95 **
Scanned and formatted for you by The WEE Scot -- paul macGregor
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