Rigatoni with Chicken Sausage, Tomatoes and Cream

Trader Joe's sells a Sicilian chicken sausage that in the words of Mary Poppins, is practically perfect in every way. I try to keep some in the freezer at all times for a quick weeknight meal. My go-to preparation is to sautee it with some onions and red peppers, mix in a jar of spaghetti sauce, doctor it with whatever herbs I'm in the mood for, and voila' -- dinner!

 Every once in awhile, however, I get bored with that old standby, and decide to branch out. Enter my good friend, the Epicurious app. A quick search yielded this 4-fork, blue-ribbon recipe, which I can now add to the weeknight rotation. It's simple. It uses ingredients I tend to have on hand. And it's absolutely delicious.

For my first attempt, I made as written, heavy cream and all. Next time, I'll try lightening it up with some haf-and-half. I have a feeling it will be just as good.

Rigatoni with Chicken Sausage, Tomatoes, and Cream

(adapted slightly from Epicurous)

• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 pound Italian chicken sausage, 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 rigatoni (or your favorite pasta)
• 1/2 cup (packed) chopped fresh basil
• Freshly grated Pecorino Romano cheese

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. Add onion and garlic; sauté until onion is tender and sausage is browned, about 3 minutes longer. Add tomatoes and cream. Reduce heat to low and simmer until sausage mixture thickens, about 3 minutes. Season to taste with salt and pepper.

Meanwhile, cook pasta in large pot of boiling salted water until tender but still firm to bite. Drain, reserving 1 cup cooking liquid. Return pasta to same pot. Add sausage mixture and toss over medium-low heat until sauce coats pasta, adding reserved cooking liquid by 1/4 cupfuls if mixture is dry. Transfer pasta to serving dish. Sprinkle with basil. Serve, passing cheese separately.

Creole-Style Shrimp, Chicken, and Sausage Gumbo

For the life of me, I don't know how I managed to get gumbo on the brain. It isn't Mardi Gras after all, and the weather really has been too warm to justify the need for a stick-to-your-ribs stew. All I know is that once the idea popped into my head, nothing but gumbo was going to satisfy my craving.

Feeling somewhat intimidated by Creole cooking -- and really not wanting my efforts to be in vain, I turned to a trusted cookbook: Soups, Stews, and Chilis from the Editors of Cook's Illustrated. I "borrowed" this book from a colleague about a year ago, for the specific purpose of making Chicken Mole, and well, I never gave it back. Not that my colleague is complaining. After all, he does get samples of anything I create as a result of his generous spirit.

Now, I want to copy the recipe. I really do. But given that Cook's Illustrated requires a paid subscription to view the recipe on their site, I have a feeling it's not exactly kosher to publish it for free here. Sooooo, here's what I'm gonna do. I'm going to give you the link for the real thing, which you can pay for if you like, ANd I'm going to direct you to another blog where I found a very similar recipe.

If you're wondering whether it's worth the effort to click on the above link, I can assure you that the answer is yes. This shrimp, sausage, and chicken gumbo is DELICIOUS, makes a ton, and although somewhat time-consuming, is quite simple to make. The CI technique for making the roux is particularly easy. You basically brown some flour in a Dutch oven on the stovetop, stir in some oil, put a lid on it, and stick it in the oven for 45 minutes. Just be careful upon removing the lid. I was hasty, and let me tell you, that stuff'll really clear your sinuses! Whew!