The Italian Relaxation Meal

I should start this post by saying I am not, in any way, Italian. There is no one on either side of my family who is Italian. Despite this lack of Italian heritage, my family can cook some fantastic Italian food (at least I think it’s good). This meal is relatively simple, but can be really impressive when you’re cooking for a large group and you can say “yes, I did make this sauce!”

This recipe is my mother’s Rigatoni recipe. I'm pretty convinced she came up with this one her own because I never saw a printed recipe for this. If she didn't come up with this on her own, I apologize to whatever recipe book she borrowed it from in the 1970's.

I RARELY make this meal because it is not the healthiest recipe, and my fiancé and I don’t eat pasta very often. Last night was an exception. It has been a long week, and last night I really wanted to decompress by making a great, comforting dinner. I kept a glass of wine next to me at all times while cooking, and I felt great once I put the food on the table.

Here’s what you need:

4-6 cloves of garlic (I like a lot of garlic), diced

1 large yellow onion, diced

*1/2 roll of spicy sausage and 1/2 roll of reduced fat sausage (I used Jimmy Dean)

1 28 oz. can of whole tomatoes (San Marzano’s are my favorite)

1 15 oz. can of plain tomato sauce

2 tbsp. of tomato paste

½ cup of white wine (I used pinot grigio)

½ tsp. of dried thyme

1 cup of half and half

1 and a half bags of whole-wheat rigatoni pasta

Fresh shredded parmigiano reggiano cheese

*In regard to the sausage, feel free to mix it up. If you don’t like things spicy, use half a roll of Italian sausage, and half reduced fat.

Here is what you do:

1. Over medium-high heat, in a large pan, sauté your garlic and onion in about ½ tbsp. of olive oil (about 5 minutes) stirring consistently.
2.  Add ½ the spicy sausage and ½ the reduced fat sausage and mash it up with your spatula. Cook with garlic and onion until browned.

3. Once the sausage is brown, add whole tomatoes, tomato sauce and tomato paste. Mash up the whole tomatoes and mix everything together.
4. Add the wine and thyme and stir.
5. Lower the heat to medium and allow to simmer (uncovered) for 20-30 minutes.
6. Meanwhile, get a large pot, add water and a little salt in preparation for your pasta.
7. After about 20-30 minutes, add the half and half. When you add the half and half, turn on the heat for the water.

8. Allow the sauce to continue to simmer, stirring regularly. When the water comes to a boil, add your pasta. Cook until al dente (fairly firm – you don’t want mushy pasta!).
9. Drain your pasta.
10. Spoon your sauce over the pasta and add some cheese – enjoy!

I love this meal. It is so comforting, it is fun to make, and it seems really impressive with not a lot of work. This recipe will serve about 6 people, but if you are only cooking for 2, it makes the best leftovers.

We had a great Chianti with this, and by the end of the night, it felt like my week had never happened (probably due to the food and the wine) J