Love at First Bite: Sausage Rigatoni in a Spicy Pink Cream Sauce..

This dish is a FAVORITE in my house, and even though it has a nice kick to it- my kiddos can't get enough. I happen to be a "Go Big or Go Home" type of person, so this recipe will feed a small Army, but if you want to feed a smaller quantity of people- like Ohhhh say... Rhode Island- just reduce the ingredients to half quantities.

1 1/2 lbs Rigatoni (Penne will work too)
Extra Virgin Olive Oil
2 lbs Mild Italian Sausage
6 fresh Garlic cloves, thinly sliced
4 cups prepared Marinara Sauce
2 cups Heavy Whipping Cream
1 1/2 teaspoon dried Crushed Red Pepper
1 1/2 lbs grated Mozzarella Cheese
Chopped fresh Italian Parsley
Grated Parmesan Cheese
A dog or two to trip over occasionally

Before you begin- there are two ways to make this dish. One is removing the Sausage from the casing, and browning it in a pan- drain and then add to the pasta/sauce.. This is how I usually make it, and it's amazing. However tonight, I rubbed the sausage with Olive Oil, and broiled them until browned and sliced them thinly before adding them to the dish in layers. Either way works, and though the texture is slightly different, obviously the flavor is the same. I just thought the slices would work better for the photo.

Preparations:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Rub Sausage with Olive Oil completely coating them, place in shallow pan and cook until no longer pink in the middle and nicely browned on the outside.

Cook pasta in a large pot of boiling water until done and drain.

In a large pan (I used a deep 12" skillet) heat a small amount (just enough to coat the bottom of the pan) of Olive Oil over medium high heat, and saute garlic until tender..about 2 minutes. Then add Marinara Sauce, and Crushed Red Pepper. Slowly stir in Heavy Whipping Cream until well blended.

In a large baking pan- layer drained Pasta, Sausage, Sauce, and Half of the Mozzarella Cheese. Then add another layer of Pasta, Sausage, Sauce, and top with remaining Mozzarella. Sprinkle Chopped Parsley liberally all over the top and bake until cheese is melted, slightly browning, and sauce is starting to bubble up through the Mozzarella. Remove the ridiculously heavy pan from the oven, (this is where you trip over a dog or two) and place the dish on top of a folded towel on your counter.

Let cool AT LEAST 15-20 minutes. This is a good time to make garlic bread, a salad, whatever.. But you have to let it sit so that the sauce will set. If you have a good glass pan- it will still be nice and warm when you serve it because the towel also helps to keep it insulated, so no worries.

Once it's ready to serve- top with grated Parmesan and enjoy.

MANGIA!

Cooling on towel...