Country-Style Rigatoni

This is a dish I made up based on things I knew Greg liked in pasta. The beans add some fiber and extra protein so you don’t need as much sausage, and the spinach adds another veg. Since Greg likes things to have a name, even if they are made up, I call it Country-Style Rigatoni because this is kind of a rustic dish.

Country-Style Rigatoni

serves 4 and is even better the next day for lunch

1 lb box rigatoni (I like Barilla)

Slug of olive oil

3 cloves garlic, chopped

1/2 t red pepper flakes (I use this in addition to the spicy sausage. If you used mild sausage, but like it spicy, add 1 t instead)

1 t dried Italian herbs

3-4 big links of spicy Italian turkey sausage, casings removed and sausage crumbled (I used Publix and you can use of course you can use pork, or mild if you’d like)

1 28 oz can “new world style” crushed tomatoes (These are in a blue can at Publix. You can use another Italian crushed tomatoes if you can’t find these, but these are nice and thick and smooth)

salt and pepper to taste

3/4 bag of chopped spinach

2/3 of a 14 oz can of cannellini beans

Parmesan to top

Saute garlic until you smell it (about 30 sec), then add red pepper flakes, dried herbs and sausage. Cook until sausage is cooked through. Add tomatoes and salt and pepper to taste, then let simmer for about 10-15 minutes partially covered while you cook the pasta. When the pasta is cooked and drained (save about a 1/2 c of the pasta water) and the sauce is a good consistency, add the spinach to the sauce (about 3/4 of a bag of pre-washed spinach) a few handfuls at a time and stir until it wilts. Add canellini beans and stir. Add pasta and some pasta water if sauce is too thick. Serve topped with lots of Parmesan.

If you have some fresh herbs this is a good time to use them up- basil and parsley would be perfect. You can omit the dried herbs and stir the fresh ones in at the end with the beans.