Jambolicious!

At our farmer's market over the weekend we picked up a pack of chorizo sausages from our local vendor. So far all of their products have been really good, but I hadn't had the chorizo yet. I wasn't sure what I would make and just tossed them in the freezer for the time being. As I planned out what to make for the next few days I had two things in mind. Use the chorizo and make something I could have leftovers for lunch. As the weather continued to cool down, I was craving something spicy, warm and filling. Jambalaya! Now, traditionally, jambalaya used Andouille sausage, not chorizo. There are also a million ways to direct your jambalaya from there. I wasn't concerned. Chorizo was gonna work for me! Oh, and forgive me Cajun spirits. My trinity didn't include celery--I forgot to get some! I subbed in some ground celery seed, crossed myself and said a prayer instead.

Jambalaya

I sort of made my jambalaya up as I went along. I started by cooking the sausages. I choose to keep them in their casing and cook them whole. I thought about removing the casing and crumbling the meat up, but I wanted bigger chunks of meat. I'm pleased with the direction I went. Cooking the sausages first renders out some of their fat, which I then used to cook the rest of the ingredients.

After remove the sausages from the pot, I sauted chunks of diced chicken. When that was cooked through, I removed it and moved on to the onions and garlic. I had to cross myself again here, as I didn't follow the true trinity! The peppers. I'll tell you more in a minute. While the onions were cooking, I moved on to spices. I used about a TB of cajun seasoning and 1 tsp of ground celery seed, 1/4 tsp of chipotle chile and chimayo chile for some heat. I also added a TB of Beau Monde seasoning. I dropped in a full bay leaf as well. I returned the chicken and sausages to the pot and poured in a 14 oz can of petite diced tomatoes and 4 cups of chicken stock. Carefully stir in 1 cup of uncooked rice. Bring to a simmer then reduce the heat to barely a bubble. At this point I added the peppers-diced green and red. I do this so the peppers don't cook too far and become mushy. I like them to still have some texture and be "just soft." In the past, if I saute them with the onions and celery (when I have it), they almost become too mushy for me.

Cook slowly until the rice is just cooked through. If you want to use shrimp or other seafood in your jambalaya, now is the time to add it. The residual heat will cook the tender morsels, without over cooking them.

Turn the heat off. I let my jambalaya sit for a few minutes before serving. The rice continues to absorb liquid and flavor.

Serve hot, in large bowls with large spoons! Enjoy.

Wurstplatte!

One of my favorite restaurants is Cafe Berlin on Capital Hill in Washington, DC. They have great German food, some of the best I've had. The first time I went there, I felt as though I was walking into my Grandmother's house during the Christmas holidays. They were decorated for the season, the place was warm and the food was amazing. That was over ten years ago. I've been going regularly since then. 90% of the time I order the Deutsche Wurstplatte. A big plate with a bratwurst, a weisswurst, fried potatoes, sauerkraut and a pan sauce. I want to lick my plate its so good.

The other night I made my version of the Deutsche Wurstplatte. I had bratwurst only, but they were pan fried until browned and cooked thru. I started my pan sauce with some chopped shallots, a little flour to make a light roux and deglazed with some broth (a mix of chicken & beef). The sauce simmered and thickened. Prior & meanwhile, I made a batch of pan fried potatoes that were cooked in a little olive oil, salt & pepper and some seasonings. The sauerkraut was a tasty dish. I rinse and drain my store bought kraut. I add a little chicken broth, some caraway seeds, salt & pepper and one grated apple. Cover and simmer until cooked and delicious. The apple helps take out some, but not all, of the tart, tangy, bitter flavors. When the wurst were browned, I put them the in the pot of kraut to finish cooking while I made the sauce and finished the potatoes.

For the most fun, serve all on a giant platter, family style. Drink beer.

Prost!

Returning from vacation

We returned from part one of our vacation yesterday. After an extended weekend of restaurant good and take-out, I had to make dinner. I got a pot of water boiling for some pasta and made a quick sauce with 1/2 pound of Italian sausage, 1/2 small onion, diced finely, 1 clove of garlic, minced and a teaspoon of Italian season. Add 1/4 cup of dry white wine and one can of petite diced tomatoes and at the last minute 1/2 cup of chiffonade of basil. Toss with the al dente pasta, serve hot. Mmmmm!

Part two of vacation begins tomorrow. YEAH!

Saturday's Local Dinner

Saturday morning we got up and headed up to the Avenue for a special farmer's market. On normal Saturday's our local community market is head at our community center. But this past Saturday, the community market turns into a street fair on our humble town's main drag. We left with a typical bounty of goods. I was hoping to get enough goods to make a full dinner at home and boy oh boy were we lucky!



We started with some freshly picked beets. Peeled and quartered, I roasted them at 400 with a pinch of salt and a dab of butter for an hour. They were tender and good. But I didn't plan things right, so the rest of dinner wasn't ready. I left the beets in the oven, with the heat turned off, for about another 20 minutes. That was just enough time for the beets to develop a beautiful caramelized crust on the bottom beets. Chewy candy!

We grabbed a nice bag of mixed greens for a salad. I washed them three times and let them sit in a towel lined bowl until dinner time. Then I pulled them out and started to tear the leaves into pieces for serving. Oops, found a big nasty eating one of the leaves. NO PESTICIDES my friends. At least it wasn't half a nasty attached to the leaf. I made a dressing out of fresh herbs from the garden--thyme, basil, oregano and rosemary. Chopped with shallot, a squeeze of lemon, salt & pepper. I finished the dressing off with a splash of chardonnay vinegar and avocado oil. Adjust for taste--little more salt and pepper--good to go. Tart and herby!

This season our market is super duper lucky. We have a local sausage maker now coming and selling their goods--Simply Sausage. We had a sample and bought two packs. A "Christmas Breakfast" sausage with some warm spices added in. And these little heaven snausages! Pork with tarragon, shallot and thyme. So delightful. Especially with the salad dressing I made. Perfect match to the salad. I put the sausages in a pan with about 1/2 cup of water, brought to a heavy simmer and covered for about 5-10 minutes. This cooks the sausages most of the way through. I removed the cover and drizzled a little olive oil on. Now let them sear for a few minutes per side, shaking the pan as you go. Golden brown and awesome all around. Oops, correction...tarragon, shallots and parsley...doesn't matter...so good!

The remants of the salad bowl. The greens didn't need anything else to make the salad. Well, that's a lie, we had a French baguette, the beets and the sausages. Perfect dinner. Only thing missing was the forthought to put of bottle of vino blanco into the chill box. Oops.

A quick heart attack recipe

White Cheese & Sausage Pasta
from Culinary in the Desert

I made this for dinner last night. It was good! Gut bomb good! Spicy from the sausage. Ridiculously creamy and gooey from the cheese and bechamel sauce. Stupid Good. I more or less followed the recipe; even though I didn't have it in front of me, so some of the quantities were off and I ad libbed a bit. Added some shredded white cheddar cheese (1/2 cup) as well as the mozzarella and parm.

Instead of using another baking dish, I made sure to boil the pasta in an oven-proof pot. After I drained the pasta, I dumped it back in the pot and poured the sausage/sauce mixture over, stirred and baked. Saved us a little extra clean up. I used a half pound of spicy ground pork sausage, not turkey sausage. I don't think it matters much. But use the spicy if you like some good heat. If not, use regular, but add a little red pepper flake. You want some heat to cut through all the creamy, cheesey goodness.



4 cups dry rigatoni or any other short tube-shaped pasta
8 ounces hot Italian turkey sausage, casings removed
2 TB butter
3 TB all-purpose flour
2 cups milk
3 ounces fresh grated Parmesan cheese
1/4 tsp crushed red pepper flakes
1/4 tsp salt
4 ounces shredded mozzarella cheese

Preheat oven to 400

In a large pot of boiling salted water, add pasta and cook according to package directions. Drain.

Meanwhile, in a large skillet over medium heat, add sausage - cook until browned, stirring to crumble. Transfer to a paper towel-lined plate and set aside.

Add butter to the same skillet and allow to melt over medium heat - whisk in flour and allow to cook, whisking, for a minute or two. Gradually add milk, stirring with a whisk until smooth. Cook, stirring, until thick, about 8 minutes - remove from heat.

In a large bowl, toss together the sauce, cooked sausage Parmesan, crushed red pepper and salt. Scoop the mixture into a 7" x 11" baking dish coated with nonstick spray. Scatter the top with mozzarella. Bake until bubbly and the top is lightly browned, about 20 minutes.

OctoberFest

The other night was a simple night. One in which we went back to our German roots. A very tasty evening of embracing the waning days of Oktoberfest.

Kielbasa with sauerkraut and pan-fried potatoes.

Fried potatoes--cook them your favorite way. I liked these, diced just shy of 1/4 inch dice. Season liberally with salt, pepper and...I know...Mrs. Dash. Right here, in college, this was a meal for me. On special occasions, I would also get a little sour cream or grated parmesan. But generally, it was one or two potatoes, diced, seasoned and fried. Not the best nutrition, but I wasn't hungry!

The main part of this dinner was the kielbasa and sauerkraut. Cut the sausage into 1/4 inch half slices. Fry in a pan until they start to crisp up and brown. Season with 1 teaspoon of paprika, some salt and pepper. Stir.

Meanwhile, rinse the sauerkraut under cold water and drain. When the sausages are crisp and brown to your liking, stir in the 'kraut. (I bought a 1 lb bag, I think that's the smallest size you can get of the "fresh" variety). Season with 1 teaspoon of crushed caraway seeds. Add 1/2-1 cup of chicken broth. Simmer for 5-10 minutes until warm. Taste and adjust seasoning. Serve hot. Simple, pretty fast, hearty and pretty tasty.

Catch Up & Wine Tasting

Let's play catch-up...again...?!!?? Sorry I haven't been blogging as much lately. It's one of the few things I feel guilty about. I've committed so much time to Eat With Me, that when I let days slide by without posting, I feel like a neglectful baby. Well, such is life and other ongoing projects. I'll keep trucking along and ask that you bear with me...

This week has been about not spending extra money and using what we have at home. To that end, we had some bratwurst in the freezer and those became Sunday night's dinner.

I wasn't up for firing up the grill, so I par-boiled the brats to cook them through. Then they were give a quick fry up in a pan, followed my a nice bath in beer, onions and butter. Heaven on a bun! Oh, we didn't have buns, we had a left over loaf of Italian bread that was purchased over the weekend. All was good.


Monday night I took some frozen chicken thighs out of the freezer and prepped them for a warm, slightly spicy/smoky braise. First, I cooked up a few slices of bacon that was cut into 1/2 pieces. With the fat rendered, I seared the chicken after seasoning it with salt, pepper and a blend of sweet paprika, smoky paprika, dried mustard and oregano. After the chicken was seared, I sauted some onions, red peppers and two medium tomatoes that I had seeded and diced. To that I added about 1 cup of chicken broth. When brought to a simmer, I returned the chicken to the pan, covered and placed in a 300 degree oven for about 15-20 minutes. Tender, juicy and flavorful chicken. Just prior to serving, I removed the chicken to a plate and simmered the braising liquid down to create a sauce. I returned the cooked bacon bits to the sauce and served over the chicken with some steamed rice and green beans. A very satisfying dinner. I'll make this again.


I felt I needed to get away and get lost this weekend so I took a great drive to the Shenandoah National Park and drove about half of Skyline Drive. What a beautiful day! I got lost in thoughts and reflection on things that have been happening over the past years and just let myself absorb all Mother Nature had to offer. It was a great experience.


On my way back from the Shenandoah National Park, I stopped at three different wineries and participated in their tastings. There was Rappahannock Cellars, Fox Meadow Winery and Philip Carter Winery. Rappahannock was the first stop and best for tasting, they seemed to really know the business of the tasting experience, great service and a nice atmosphere. The thing I think I appreciated the most; the bottle of water included with the tasting fee!!!! You know how often I've had to ask for water at a tasting? I loved it. The wines were all interesting and the guy who helped me out seemed to know what he was talking about and was genuinely interested in what my thoughts where. I left with a bottle of Meritage. Fox Meadow offered a tasting with food pairings. The pairings were tiny pieces of nibbles...I'm talking small, but you got enough to notice the differences with the wines. The most interest was Pinot Gris with rice krispie treats! It was a lovely pairing. I left here with a bottle of Merlot. The last visit was a terrifying experience for me, considering how mellow of a day I had been having. Philip Carter had some sort of special event going on and there were LOUD stinky children running around and screaming...and LOUD drunk adults screaming everywhere. I considered leaving, but I was curious about the wine. Finally, I got someone to help me out and I enjoyed several wines, they were good, but the most interesting here was the Chardonnay, which was oaked and not something I usually like, but the oak wasn't in your face monster oak, I really appreciated it, so I brought a bottle of that home with me! Good times...except for all the loud people!

Two meals

Here are two meals we've done in the past few days. The first is a so-so recipe from Everyday Food. Thai Beef with Chile and Basil over Coconut Rice. Something needs to be worked on in this recipe to balance the flavors some. Fish sauce was too dominate. Also, this is strange coming from me, but I need to kick up the veggie component to this meal. Perhaps additional peppers? Green beans or broccoli? I was excited about the coconut rice, but the recipe didn't work, I had to add additional water part way thru the cooking process. I also ended up with something more like a coconut risotto. Not the best meal.


Thai Beef with Chiles and Basil over Coconut Rice
1 1/4 cup jasmine rice
1 can (13.5 oz) coconut milk
Salt
2 TB plus 1 tsp fish sauce
2 TB plus 1 tsp soy sauce
1 tsp sugar
1 TB vegetable oil
3 garlic cloves, chopped
3 long hot peppers or red jalapenos, seeded and sliced into matchsticks
1 1/4 lb ground beef
1 cup loosely packed basil leaves
lime wedges for serving

1. In a medium saucepan, combine rice, coconut milk and 3/4 cup water and 1/2 tsp salt. Cover and bring to a boil; reduce to a simmer, cover and cook until rice is tender and liquid has been absorbed, about 25 minutes.

2. When rice is almost done, combine fish sauce, soy sauce and sugar in a small bowl; set aside. Heat a skillet or wok over high. Add oil and heat; add garlic and half the chiles. Cook, stirring constantly, 15 seconds. Add beef and cook, breaking up meat with wooden spoon until completley browned, about 4 minutes. Add soy mixture and cook for 30 seconds. Add basil and remaining chiles and stir to combine. Serve beef over coconut rice and with lime wedges.

NOTE: The rice didn't cook properly. I had to add almost an additional cup of water to the recipe. I'd either go with plain rice or try using more water and less coconut milk. See if that works. As for the beef. I'd add some veggies as I suggested, maybe pre-cook them, then stir into the beef at the end. I'd also cut back to 1 TB of fish sauce next time. This was too much.


~~~~~


Last night I made Italian Sausage & Peppers. I was looking forward to using up the vegetables. They are on their last leg in our un-refrigerated house. But when all was said and done. I was very unsatisfied with the meal. This can be traced directly back to the Italian sausages I had purchased. Quality ingredients are key. So for your viewing pleasure, I will only give you sauteing peppers and onions. This would have been a far more satisfying dinner just like this! Oh well.

Plan B

Looks nice. Tasted good. But totally not what was planned for dinner.

When you plan to make lentils, make sure you have lentils. Silly Scott. I had planned to make the Warm French Lentil Salad for dinner and turns out I had less than a 1/4 cup of lentils. Not enough for a snack. So Plan B! I went with the Israeli Couscous. It worked, different, but it worked. I added some onions and carrots to bulk this up a bit and it was fine. I didn't cook the carrots long enough, they were nearly crunchy, other than that it was nice. The vinaigrette flavors complement nicely with the pasta and very nicely with the smoked sausage. The only real problem I had with the dish was the parsley for garnish. It was very tough and wasn't easy to eat...chew chew chew and it wouldn't go away. Oh well, my parsley plant is about dead anyway.

Now I need to order some lentils and more couscous to replace my stock.

Peppers and Sausage w/Pasta

This recipe is from the recent edition of Real Simple. I was drawn in my the promise of 20 minute meals on the cover. So I picked it up in San Diego to have as in-flight reading material. I forget that there is a whole bunch of this magazine that isn't geared to me, so I read the 5 pages of recipes and put the magazine away.

As I don't have the recipe in front of me and I made some changes, we'll have to say this is an adapation of Real Simple's recipe for pasta with peppers and sausage.

You need peppers. Get what you can. It's summer now, perhaps you can get a variety of locally grown peppers at your neighborhood farmer's market.

First you need to cook up some Italian sausage links. Then wipe out the excess fat from the pan, add some fresh olive oil and saute some onions and the peppers, until just tender.

Add some dry white wine and bring to a full simmer and reduce. Add garlic, cherry or grape tomatoes (cut in half if you wish) and some basil. Again, tomatoes and basil--fresh at your farmers market!

Slice the sausage and add to the peppers and tomatoes.

Toss with al dente, shapely pasta. Prior to serving add some cubes of fresh mozzarella and enjoy!

Pasta w/Sausage & Peppers
For 2-4 meals (depending on hunger!)
3-4 Italian Sausages
1 large pepper, or portions of multiple peppers (green, yellow, red, etc.), sliced
1-2 TB olive oil
salt/pepper to taste
1/4 medium onion, sliced
2-4 garlic cloves, minced
1/2 tsp red pepper flakes (optional)
1 cup cherry or grape tomatoes, sliced if you like
1/4 cup of basil, sliced
1/2 cup of fresh mozarella, cubed
1/4 lb box of shapely pasta, cooked to al dente (reserve 1 cup of cooking water)

Cook the sausages in a medium to large frying pan. Place the sausages in the pan and add water, about 2 cups. Bring to a boil. The water will heat and cook the sausages through and eventually evaporate leaving a little rendered fat to brown the cooked sausages.

When the sausages are browned, remove to a plate or cutting board. Wipe out excess fat and add 1-2 tablespoons of olive oil. Add the onions and saute for 2 minutes. Add the red pepper flakes at this point if you like. Add the peppers and saute for another 2 minutes, until just tender. Add the garlic and cook for 1 minute. Add wine and deglaze the pan, scraping up any bits that have accumulated on the bottom of the pan. Bring to a simmer and let reduce by half.

Add the tomatoes and sliced basil. Cook for two minutes. Return the sausage and the cooked pasta. Toss to coat. Add some of the pasta cooking water if the pasta and peppers appear dry.

Add the mozzarella cubes and serve.

The leftovers are a great lunch. I had mine and really enjoyed it. The pasta really soaked up the flavor of the peppers and sausage. The peppers and tomatoes were a bit soggy, but tasty. Enjoy!

20 minute dinner

Pretty dang good. I'm fully satisfied. Pasta with sausages, peppers, tomatoes and later mozarella.

Recipe to follow.

Whoa, That's Deep

For dinner last night I made my Deep Dish Pizza.

Still very delicious, but still the same problem as last time. The sauce is too watery. Oh, and I over-cooked it a bit. The crust was dry and tough. But overall, still a great pizza. I have some ideas for next time. I used a 28 oz can of whole tomatoes that I crushed and added some of the liquid from the can. The flavor is incredibly rich and fresh. But as we see, very watery. Next time, I will still do the whole tomatoes that I crush up, I will let them drain. I will then add a small can of sauce, which is thicker than the liquid in the canned whole tomatoes. I suspect that will help out the watery issue, but I'm also worried it will alter the flavor some, as the canned sauce is more processed than the whole tomatoes. But I'll have to try it to see!

Satisfying Dinner and Great for Lunch

Mmmmm...quiche!
Harvarti and Sausage Quiche with our most awesome favorite salad.

Mixed field greens with pears, cashews, dried cherries and dressed with a basil balsamic vinaigrette.

Dive In The Deep End

Let's just jump right in. Recipes will be at the bottom.

First we get a little starter going in the mixing bowl. Flour, Sugar, Yeast, Water.

We add more flour, salt and some oil. It's starting to pull together.

The dough pulls into a ball after nearly 4 minutes!

Oil it up and let is sit.

It'll double in size.

Press the dough into your spring form pan, don't forget the sides.

First you need to lay in some slices of mozzarella. Then add in some pre-cooked sausage, broken into pieces.

We need some tomatoes. I'm moving, so I choose to use my 28oz can of San Marzano! Sweet heaven.

Break those whole, peeled tomatoes into chunks.

Add the sauce on top of the sausage and cheese.

Sprinkle some Italian seasoning on top, more or less to taste.

A handful of grated Parm.

Bake for almost fifty minutes in a very hot oven.

You may need to cut around the sides to release, if any of the tomatoes spilled over and caramelized.

The first slices really 'melted' when cut. There was a lot of liquid in that deep dish.

Carnage! But dang good!!! Seriously tasty. Take that Pizzeria Uno...I drove a quarter of the way across the country to have the original and I liked this so much more.

And now the instructions:

Pizza Dough

2 to 2 1/4 cups flour
1/4-ounce package fast acting yeast
1/2 teaspoon sugar
2 tablespoons olive oil
1/2 teaspoon salt

In the your mixers bowl, whisk together 3/4 cup of flour, yeast, sugar, and 2/3 cup hot water (130 dgrees F).

Add the oil, 1 1/4 cups of the remaining flour, and the salt and blend the mixture until it forms a dough, about 4 minutes on medium speed.

The dough may be used immediately, but for better flavor it is best to let it rise once. Put the dough in an oiled bowl and turn it to coat it with the oil. Let the dough rise, covered, in a warm place for 30 minutes, or until it is double in bulk, and punch it down.
Topping and Sauce

1/2 lb mozzarella cheese slices
1/2 lb bulk sausage
1 28 oz can of whole, peeled tomatoes
Pinch of sugar, salt, pepper, onion powder
Italian seasoning
Grated Parmesan cheese

*Preheat the oven to 475F.

Cook the sausage, in small discs, until browned and cooked, over medium heat.

Meanwhile, form the dough into your spring form pan. Press the dough out into a large disc shape, gently lay the dough into the pan, press the dough up the sides of the pan.

Lay your cheese slices for the first level. Break the sausage into bite size pieces, this is your next layer.

Break the tomatoes into pieces. Season with the sugar, salt, pepper, onion powder. Spoon the tomatoes on top of the cheese and sausage.

Sprinkle the top with Italian seasoning and the grated Parm.

Bake for 40-50 minutes, the edges of the dough will be peeking from the pan with a light golden brown kiss.

Remove from the oven and allow to rest for 5-10 minutes, cut into wedges and serve.

NOTE: This came from several recipes I had in my files, with no credit. If you know who these came from, or have seen them online elsewhere, please let me know and I'll give proper credit.

Poor Man's Lasagna

I'm calling this my Poor Man's Lasagna, and it couldn't be simpler to prepare.

Brown 1/2 lb of sausage in large skillet.

When brown, add 1 TB Italian Seasoning, stir to incorporate.

Pour in 1 small 8 oz can of tomato sauce and 1 14 oz can of diced tomatoes.

Season with Salt & Pepper.

Simmer for 20 minutes.

Stir sauce into about a 1/2 pound of cooked, shapely pasta.

Stir about 1/2 cup of Parmigiana Reggiano. Pour the whole mix into a medium sized baking dish.

Sprinkle with shredded mozzarella cheese. Place under the broiler in your oven for no more than 6 minutes...until golden and bubbly.

Serve hot!

So good. I had two full servings. The recipe makes about six servings. Love it. This recipe takes a fraction of the time of actual lasagna and only some of the ingredients. I know this isn't a layered pasta dish, but it sure has the great flavors. Comforting and delicious.

Risotto

Following the basic risotto recipe, we had...

Sausage & Fennel Risotto

I browned 1/2 a pound of italian sausage with a touch of olive oil. When cooked through, I removed the sausage to a plate and added 1 small onion and 1 bulb of fennel, roughly chopped.

When the fennel and onion have softened, add the arborio rice, stir to coat the rice grains with oil. Allow to saute for a moment. Deglaze with white wine. Then begin the patient process of adding chicken stock one ladle full at a time. When the rice is tender and creamy, I added one peeled and diced tomato. Next, I returned the sausage and parmigiano cheese. The final steps, stir in 1 TB fresh, chopped oregano and 1 TB butter. Stir and serve. Garnish with a fennel frond.

A few ingredients

Wednesday night's dinner was a quick one that required just a few ingredients. Outside of some pantry staples you'll need: Italian sausages, green pepper, onion, tomatoes. The pantry staples: pasta, garlic, tomato paste, oregano, basil, and broth or water. Dinner will take you about ten minutes, give or take.


Italian Sausage and Peppers with Farfalle

To get started, bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. While this is boiling, fry the Italian sausages in large pan with some olive oil, until browned and cooke through, over medium heat. The water should be boiling by this point.

While the sausages are cooking and the water coming to a boil, prepare your remaining ingredients. Slice the peppers and onions into strips. Thinnly slice the garlic.


Peel, seed and dice the tomato.

The sausages are cooking.

When the water is boiling, dump in your pasta. Remove the sausages from the pan and toss in the peppers and onions and saute for a few minutes until they begin to soften. Add the garlic. The garlic will start to release its aroma in less than a minute. Add the tomato paste and allow to cook for a minute. Add the dried herbs. Season with salt & pepper.

Using a ladle, add a scoop or two of pasta water to the pan with the peppers and onions. Stir to incorporate. Allow to simmer lightly. Add the tomatoes. This should be about 10 minutes at this point. Scoop out the pasta and add it to the pepper/onion mixture. Add additional water to help the pasta finish cooking.

Slice the sausages into 1/2 inch pieces and add to the pan. Stir together and serve.