The rain continues this summer. It made me want to get out my crock pot and make something comforting. Also, after having that wonderful meal at the other Penny’s home, which included marsala pears cooked in the crock pot from a recipe in The Italian Slow Cooker, I purchased the book myself. The first recipe that the book fell open to was this spicy Tuscan sausage ragu. It said ” This thick, rich sauce is heavenly on chunky cuts of pasta, such as rigatoni or rotelle.” That’s all of the incentive I needed.
I just let the sausages bubble away in the tomato sauce for about five hours then added cream to the mixture and cooked it for another hour. The cream gave the sauce a nice richness and took away much of the acidic flavor of the tomatoes.
With a few shavings of grated Parmesan cheese on top this made for a hearty and heady bowl of pasta. Just what I was craving.
Guess what I am looking at in this picture. It will be the subject of my next post.
SPICY TUSCAN SAUSAGE RAGU
Makes 10 cups
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 pound sweet Italian pork sausage, casings removed
1/2 pound hot Italian pork sausage, casings removed
1 large red onion, finely chopped
2 garlic cloves, finely chopped
1/2 cup dry red wine
1 28-ounce can Italian peeled tomatoes with their juice, chopped
1 28-ounce can tomato puree
Salt
1 cup heavy cream
In a large skillet, heat the oil over medium heat. Crumble the sausages into the pan and cook, stirring frequently to break up the lumps, until the meat is lightly browned. Add the onion and garlic and cook until the onion is tender.
Add the wine and scrape the bottom of the skillet. Pour the contents into the slow cooker. Add the tomatoes, puree, and a pinch of salt. Cover and cook on low for 5 hours. Stir in the cream and cook for 1 hour more, or until the meat is very tender. Taste for seasoning.
I could eat pasta like this 5 nights a week. Was there a full moon you were looking at?
I have the same cookbook and have made the recipe. It is so very good!!! Love it!
That’s a great looking bowl of pasta Penny. My guess is that David shinnied up that tree naked.
This is another of your recipes that is printing as I leave a comment. I just know that this is a taste I will love on the first cool-ish day in September!
Looks so delicious, but too hot here at the beach for pasta. Maybe in sept when our VA weather cools down. Made a salad of heirloom tomatoes, mozzarella and avocado with lime and balsamic vinegar with melon for dessert today. Are you looking at a coon or possum that Daisy tree’ed? Can you tell I grew up in southern IN where my uncles had coon dogs?
I haven’t tried that one yet, but is sounds wonderful! What are you looking at???? Looking forward to finding out. Yes, we need to get together! Looking forward to your email.
This sounds heavenly! Just the thought of knowing it’s cooking while I’m doing something else is great!
You look like you are chained to that tree!!
XO,
Jane
Never thought of you as being a “tree hugger” ha ha.
This ragu looks absolutely fabulous!
Looking at the moon!
I can’t believe I missed this heavenly ragu. It’s perfect for this crazy rain we’ve been having. One minute it’s raining, then the sun comes out, then it starts the process all over again.
Sam
Sounds like a terrific recipe. I’ve used my slow cooker so much this summer at our cottage. I can be out on the water with our guests while dinner is slowly cooking away in the kitchen.
Read the recipe and blog post and said to myself, “Well, ok. That’s supper tonight.” Went to the store, put the recipe together while listening to NPR, added the cream and waited another hour, then hubby and I dined on a hugely appreciated dinner which was chockfull of flavor and most satisfying. And, there’s enough left over to freeze for another enjoyable meal in the future. We loved it!