Creamy Sausage Penne

Total Time: 30 mins Preparation Time: 5 mins Cook Time: 25 mins

Ingredients

• Servings: 6
• 1 lb penne pasta (fusilli or ziti could also be used, but i prefer penne)
• 3 tablespoons olive oil (preferably extra-virgin)
• 3 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 pinch cayenne pepper
• 1 lb sweet mild italian sausage
• 1 cup heavy cream
• 3/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon fresh ground black pepper
• 1/4 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
• 3 tablespoons unsalted butter (cut into small bits)
• 1/2 cup freshly grated parmesan cheese
• 1 tablespoon finely chopped fresh basil
• 1 tablespoon finely chopped fresh flat leaf parsley

Recipe

• 1 bring a large pot of salted water to boil and cook the penne until al dente; drain well and do not rinse.
• 2 after you put the water on to boil, remove sausage meat from the casings, crumble, and set aside.
• 3 in a large skillet, heat olive oil over medium-high heat.
• 4 add garlic and cayenne and saute for approximately 30 seconds, then add sausage meat to skillet.
• 5 cook until sausage meat is no longer pink (about 5 minutes or so).
• 6 add cream, salt, pepper and nutmeg to skillet and turn heat to high to bring mixture to a boil.
• 7 reduce heat and simmer, gently, until the cream reduces and the sauce thickens a bit; it takes about 10 minutes.
• 8 place cooked penne in a large serving bowl (it's nice if you warm it first) and pour sauce over; add butter and cheese to bowl and combine all well.
• 9 taste; add more salt and/or pepper if you wish.
• 10 sprinkle chopped herbs over top and serve.