Sausage Fennel Rocket Fusilli Recipes

Steps:

• Heat the olive oil in a large heavy pot or Dutch oven, such as Le Creuset, over medium heat. Add the fennel and onion and saute for 7 minutes, stirring occasionally, until tender. Add the sausage and cook for 7 to 8 minutes, crumbling it with a fork, until nicely browned. Add the garlic, crushed fennel seeds, red pepper flakes, 2 teaspoons salt, and 1 teaspoon black pepper and cook for one minute. Pour in the wine, bring to a boil, and add the heavy cream, half-and-half, and tomato paste. Bring back to a boil, lower the heat, and simmer for 20 minutes, until the sauce has thickened.
• Meanwhile, bring a large pot of water to a boil, add 2 tablespoons salt, and cook the rigatoni according to the directions on the package. Drain and add to the sauce, stirring to coat the pasta. Cook over low heat for 5 minutes to allow the pasta to absorb the sauce. Off the heat, stir in the parsley and 1/2 cup of the Parmesan. Serve hot in shallow bowls with the remaining 1/2 cup Parmesan on the side.

Steps:

• Bash up the fennel seeds and chillies in a pestle and mortar or Flavor Shaker until coarsely crushed, then put to one side. Heat a splash of olive oil in a heavy-bottomed frying pan. Squeeze the meat out of the sausage skins and put into the pan, really breaking it up using the back of a spoon. Fry for a few minutes until the meat starts to color and the fat has rendered slightly, then crush it once more so it resembles coarse mince. Add the bashed-up fennel seeds and chillies and cook on a medium heat for around 10 minutes until the meat becomes crisp, golden brown and slightly caramelized.
• Stir in your oregano, then pour in the white wine and allow it to reduce by half. Add the lemon zest and juice. Turn the heat down to low while you cook your pasta in a large pan of salted boiling water according to the package instructions. When the pasta has cooked al dente, drain it in a colander, reserving some of the cooking water, and toss it in the pan with your sausagemeat. Coat the pasta in all the lovely flavors then add the butter, Parmesan, chopped parsley and a few spoonfuls of the reserved cooking water. This will give you a lovely loose, shiny sauce. Taste and check for seasoning, then serve immediately with a little extra grated Parmesan sprinkled over the top.

Steps:

• Cook pasta according to package directions until al dente; drain, reserving 1/2 cup cooking liquid. Meanwhile, in large skillet, cook sausage over medium-high heat, breaking up with back of spoon, until golden and crisp, about 5 minutes. With slotted spoon, transfer to bowl. Drain all but 2 tsp fat from pan, or add oil if not enough fat. Add leeks, salt and pepper to pan; cook over medium heat, stirring often, until slightly softened, about 3 minutes. Add broth and bring to boil; reduce heat and simmer until leeks are softened but some liquid remains, about 5 minutes. Add tomatoes, Parmesan cheese, parsley, pasta, reserved cooking liquid and half of the sausage; cook, tossing, until tomatoes are softened slightly, about 2 minutes. Serve topped with remaining sausage. Tip: Cooking the sausage in the pan first helps flavour the entire dish. Adding some of the pasta water at the end helps loosen the sauce and coats the pasta without adding any fat. You can also use mascarpone in place of the cream cheese

Steps:

• Heat oil in a 3-quart sauté pan on medium-low. Add the sausages and cook, turning frequently, until browned and cooked through, about 15 minutes. Remove sausages to a cutting board. Add fennel seeds to the pan, cook until fragrant, then add fresh fennel, onion and garlic. Sauté until translucent and just starting to color, 10 to 15 minutes. Season with salt. Turn off heat.
• Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Add the pasta and cook until al dente, 13 to 15 minutes. As the pasta cooks, quarter the sausages lengthwise, then slice 1/2-inch thick. Add sausage to the sauté pan and heat on medium-low. Stir in mascarpone and season generously with pepper. Add 1/2 cup pasta water. Stir and continue heating gently. Mince 2 tablespoons of reserved fennel fronds.
• When the pasta is done, reserve another 1/2 cup pasta water. Drain pasta - you don't have to be utterly thorough about it - and add it to the sauté pan along with enough additional pasta water for a mixture that's quite moist but not soupy. Check seasoning, fold in parsley and fennel fronds, and transfer to a serving dish, individual plates or bowls. Serve with pecorino alongside.

Steps:

• Cook pasta in a large pot of boiling salted water until al dente. Drain pasta, reserving 1 cup pasta cooking liquid.
• Meanwhile, heat oil in a large skillet over medium-high. Cook sausage, breaking up with a wooden spoon, until cooked through and browned and crispy in spots, 6-8 minutes. Using a slotted spoon, transfer to a plate.
• Add sliced fennel to skillet; season with salt and pepper. Cook, stirring occasionally, until fennel begins to soften, about 5 minutes. Continue to cook, adding 1/4 cup water to skillet as bottom begins to brown (you may need to do this a few times), until soft and caramelized, 10-15 minutes more.
• Add pasta and reserved pasta cooking liquid to skillet and cook, tossing to coat, until liquid has reduced to a creamy sauce, about 4 minutes. Add sausage and fennel fronds, season with salt and pepper, and toss to combine.

Steps:

• Line a baking sheet with parchment paper; set aside.
• In a large bowl, combine salt, fennel seed and red-pepper flakes. Add pork to the spice mixture along with the garlic, and wine. Using your hands, mix thoroughly for 1 full minute, until the pork begins to appear tacky and sticks to the palm of your hand.
• Heat a cast-iron pan over medium heat. Use a heaping tablespoon of pork mixture to make a small, thin sausage patty. Add a teaspoon or so of olive oil, and cook the patty for 2 to 3 minutes on each side, or until cooked through. Taste, and if needed, add salt or any other seasonings to the uncooked sausage mixture and mix to combine.
• Divide and form the remaining sausage into 8 2 1/2-inch patties, placing them on the prepared baking sheet as you go. Cover, and refrigerate for 30 minutes to allow the flavors to come together. (Patties can be made ahead and covered and refrigerated or frozen at this point until ready to use.)
• To cook, wipe out cast-iron pan, and return to medium heat. Add 1 tablespoon olive oil. When it shimmers, add patties in a single layer, leaving space between them. Cook 3 to 4 minutes per side, or until browned on the surface and just cooked through.
• Drain sausages on paper towels, and serve hot.

Steps:

• Put the skinned sausages in a bowl and squish together with your hands, then divide into two balls. Place one ball of sausagemeat onto a long piece of cling film. Roll into a cylinder approx 30cm long. Wrap tightly in the cling film and place on a plate or tray in the fridge. Repeat with the other ball of sausagemeat.
• Heat oven to 200C/180C fan/gas 6. Lay the pastry out on your work surface and cut it into four equal strips lengthways. Roll two of the strips out a little more with a rolling pin so that they are 40cm long and 10cm wide. Unwrap the sausagemeat, place each one in the middle of a rolled-out pastry length and sprinkle each with half the fennel seeds. On either side of the meat, cut regular slits from the edge up to the meat - do this all the way round to create 2cm tabs. Fold over the ends. Starting at one end, bring up one tab from one side and drape it over the meat, then do the same with one from the opposite side. Repeat with the other strip of sausagemeat. Brush both with egg, then lift onto baking trays.
• Cut each of the remaining strips of pastry into three strips lengthways and plait together. Lay the plait on top of the sausage pastries and brush with more egg.
• Bake in the oven for 40 mins or until risen and golden brown. Remove from the oven, transfer to a large board and slice - or allow your guests to serve themselves. Can be served hot or cold.