Penne Rigate with Spicy Sausage and Zucchini in Tomato Cream Sauce

So I made this.   I don't know how I made it take over an hour to prep everything because it did take me that long.  Looking at the recipe there is nothing that complicated about it.  Perhaps it is because I gather all the ingredients first?  I don't know.  It was easy, but not quick.

Anyway it was pretty good. I thought it could use some salt (but didn't add any to the sauce), but I salted the pasta.  I liked that the portions were huge.

We had with Caesar Salad.

Penne Rigate with Spicy Sausage and Zucchini in Tomato Cream Sauce

Photo by ALB

Use cauliflower or roasted peppers if you don't like zucchini.
Yield: Serves 4 (serving size: about 1 1/2 cups)
Hands-on: 25 Minutes
Total:45 Minutes

Ingredients

8 ounces uncooked penne rigate pasta
6 ounces hot turkey Italian sausage, casings removed (used pork Italian Sausage)
12 ounces zucchini, quartered lengthwise and cut into 1/2-inch slices
1 1/2 teaspoons dried oregano
1 teaspoon dried thyme
1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper (used 1/2 tsp)
3 garlic cloves, minced (used 6)
Dash of sugar
2 tablespoons red wine vinegar
1 (28-ounce) can no-salt-added whole tomatoes (used crushed tomatoes)
2 tablespoons heavy whipping cream
Cooking spray
3 ounces part-skim mozzarella cheese, shredded and divided (about 3/4 cup)
1 ounce Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese, grated and divided (about 1/4 cup)

Preparation

1. Preheat oven to 375°.

2. Cook pasta according to package directions, omitting salt and fat. Drain; set aside.

3. Heat a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add sausage to pan, and sauté for 5 minutes or until browned, stirring to crumble. Using a slotted spoon, remove sausage from pan. Wipe drippings from pan with a paper towel. Add zucchini to pan; sauté 3 minutes or until crisp-tender, stirring frequently. Add oregano and next 4 ingredients (through sugar); sauté 1 minute, stirring constantly. Add vinegar; cook for 30 seconds or until the liquid evaporates. Drain tomatoes in a sieve over a bowl, reserving 1 cup tomato liquid. Crush tomatoes with hands (didn't do any of this...just dumped the can into the mixture...because I used crushed tomatoes), and add to zucchini mixture. Add reserved 1 cup tomato liquid; bring to a boil. Reduce heat, and simmer 5 minutes, stirring occasionally. Remove pan from heat; stir in cream. Add pasta and sausage to tomato mixture; stir to combine.

4. Spoon half of pasta mixture into an 11 x 7-inch glass or ceramic baking dish, or divide half evenly among 4 individual dishes coated with cooking spray. Sprinkle 1 ounce mozzarella and 2 tablespoons Parmigiano-Reggiano over pasta. Top with remaining pasta mixture; sprinkle evenly with remaining 2 ounces mozzarella and remaining 2 tablespoons Parmigiano-Reggiano. Bake at 375° for 20 minutes or until browned and bubbly.

Nutritional Information
Calories: 450; Fat: 14.1g; Saturated fat: 6.8g; Monounsaturated fat: 3.8g; Polyunsaturated fat: 1.5g; Protein: 26.9g; Carbohydrate: 55.6g; Fiber: 5g; Cholesterol: 60mg; Iron: 5.2mg; Sodium: 508mg; Calcium: 347mg

Cooking Light OCTOBER 2012