Friday, February 20, 2009

Go-To

Do you have a go-to dinner? A dish you make more often than any other? One that you can eat over and over again and never gets old? Here’s my current go-to.


Looks good, even if I do say so myself. I’m actually gonna go way out on a limb here and say that it’s the perfect meal—it’s budget friendly, it’s a breeze to throw together, it's got all the important stuff like starch, veggie, and protein right in there, and it’s so fresh and vibrant you feel good eating it. And the leftovers are great for lunch the next day. And, it just tastes so good. What, did you say you don’t have a go-to dinner of your own? Well you’re welcome to try mine.

Pasta with Arugula, Roasted Peppers & Italian Sausage
Printable Recipe

4 links hot Italian sausage
1 pound fusilli, rotini, or penne
Kosher salt
½ cup extra virgin olive oil
3 cloves garlic, grated
2 roasted red bell peppers, julienned
2 roasted yellow bell peppers, julienned
7 ounces baby arugula
Grated Parmegiano-Reggiano, for serving

Heat the grill to medium-low. Add the sausages and cook, covered, without disturbing for 8 to 9 minutes, or until they release from the grate and are crusty and brown. Using tongs, turn the sausages and continue to cook, covered, over medium-low heat another 6 to 7 minutes, or until cooked through. Remove the sausages to a plate, tent with foil to keep warm, and let rest for about 5 minutes.

Meanwhile, cook the pasta in a large pot of boiling, salted water according to the package directions. Whisk together the oil and garlic in a very large bowl. Add the red bell peppers, yellow bell peppers, and arugula and toss to coat. Season to taste with salt. Cut the sausage links in half lengthwise and slice into bite-size pieces. Drain the pasta when it is al dente. Immediately add the pasta and sausage to the arugula mixture and toss to combine. Arrange on individual plates, top with plenty of Parmegiano, and serve immediately.

Serves 6. The arugula will wilt ever so slightly from the heat of the cooked pasta and sausage. Leftovers are delicious served at room temperature or reheated.

5 comments:

DK said...

This looks so yummy! It's very much like my favorite go-to easy recipe: taco pasta. We make tacos every other week or so and the leftover ground turkey w/ el pato, mixed with beans and sauteed bell pepper, tastes great on a plate of tri color rotini sprinkled with cheddar cheese, crushed tortilla chips/taco/tortilla, and a dollop of sour cream and salsa. Delish.

Kim said...

Mmmm . . . This is just like mine but my main additions to the dish are sun-dried tomatoes and toasted almonds and fresh basil when it's in season. I'm going to try arugula instead of basil, since my plant is bare:( I also alternate between bacon and sausages and different kinds of cheese- sometimes feta. This is the first time I've posted on your site. Thanks for all the inspiration!!

Anonymous said...

My go-to is the Slanted Door's black pepper caramelized chicken. It's easy, fast, and uses ingredients I usually have on hand. I'll make it a bun and serve it on top of a Vietnamese style salad.

Kat said...

This looks great. I was just looking in my fridge at some spicy turkey sausage wondering what I would put together. You gave me some ideas!

avaserfi said...

I just had this for dinner and it was delicious. Bright and colorful and tasty. Surely, this will become a regular meal.

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