This simple pasta dish will be ready in 10 minutes, the kind of dish we like on a Friday night! The Italian sausages we used tonight were the spicier sort but this would be delicious with milder ones too, the key is the higher meat content. If the sausages have fennel in them halve the fennel seeds.
Wine Suggestion: An under-rated Tuscan coast gem, Morisfarm’s Mandriolo. A classic, youthful Sangiovese with a touch of Cabernet Sauvignon and Petit Verdot this is juicy and vibrant, but also hiding a serious core that stands up to flavoursome food
Penne with Italian sausages & rocket – serves 4
- 200g Italian sausages
- 5 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
- 1 clove of garlic, peeled and finely sliced
- 1 tsp fennel seeds
- ½ glass of white wine
- 500g penne rigate pasta
- 100g freshly grated pecorino
- 100g rocket
Remove the skins from the sausages and break them up into a bowl.
Warm the oil in a large frying pan over a low heat, add the sausages and garlic and cook for about 3 minutes. Add fennel seeds and some salt and continue to cook for another minute. Add the wine and cook for a minute more, then remove from the heat.
Meanwhile cook the pasta in lots of salty water.
When the pasta is cooked, return the sauce to a medium heat. Drain the pasta and tip into the sauce. Sprinkle over the pecorino and rocket and toss for about 30 seconds over a medium heat to allow them to come together.
(Original recipe from Gino’s Pasta by Gino D’Acampo, Kyle Books, 2010.)
Jono & Jules do food & wine 
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