italian sausage and rapini white wine pasta.
The pasta of the summer: light, spicy, and loaded up with fresh broccoli rabe. Silky white wine pasta sauce coats spicy italian sausage and red pepper flakes for a flavorful but simple pasta recipe.
Makes: 1 pound of pasta Prep time: 10-12 minutes Cook Time: 15 minutes
Easy summer pastas are the best, are they not? This is a pasta I make versions of all the time because it’s simple, light, meaty, and sprinkled with greens. This version is made with broccoli rabe, or rapini, which is in the turnip family and tastes a bit like a cross between kale and broccoli.
If you aren’t familiar with broccoli rabe, have no fear: it is delicious and easy to work with. Like broccoli, it is best when blanched before adding to the dish in order to soften the stems and begin the cooking process. You could saute them on their own, instead of blanching, but I find it just as easy to blanch the rapini in the pasta water and toss it into the pasta towards the end. I also found it best to tear the stalks into small pieces- rapini are long, thick, and leafy, and kind of cumbersome to eat in a pasta when left whole. Cut the bottom of the stems off, then cut the florets into small pieces and tear the leaves into individual pieces. Promise, it’ll make things much easier in the end.
You might also be surprised with the taste of rapini. Since it isn’t in the broccoli family (deceiving as it is) it doesn’t quite taste like broccoli. It’s a bit like kale in that it has a bitter flavor, a little sharper and tangier than broccoli. Blanching helps mellow the flavor before adding it to the pasta.
This recipe might seem more involved because of the different pots and pans, but with some well-timed multitasking, it’s a breeze. Here’s the key: prepare an ice bath before you do anything. Boil your pasta water first, then heat up your skillet and begin cooking the sausage while the pasta cooks. If using a quick-cooking pasta like angel hair, you may want to start the sausage while the water boils. Once al dente, reserve some of that starchy pasta water and pull the pasta into a colander. Bring it back to a boil, if needed, and drop in the trimmed rapini.
Once when I made this, I boiled the water for so long that it evaporated in half before the pasta was done. Oops. This isn’t a problem; just add a cup or so of water and bring it back to a boil before dropping in the rapini.
Here’s where the ice bath comes in (and you’ll love yourself for preparing it in advance): as soon as the rapini turns bright green (you’ll see it, it’s an obvious green!) Remove it from the boiling water and drop it into the ice water. This is only a 30-second process, so you’ll understand why you made the ice water before starting. Trust me, it’s much better than scrambling mid-blanch.
By now, the sausage should be crumbly and dark brown and delicious. Remove that from the skillet; I find it easiest to just toss the sausage bits in with the cooked pasta in the colander. Save a bowl, right?
Then, continue on with sauteeing the aromatics in that sausage fat, adding butter to bulk it up and white wine and lemon juice to deglaze and reduce. The sauce is light, though buttery, and a lot of it is simply the pasta water (so don’t forget to reserve some)! You can also saute the rapini in the garlic, if desired, and especially if you find broccoli rabe a little too bitter. This will add a flavor directly to the rapini and give a nice, delicious char. Yum. Otherwise, simply toss it in at the end!
I have to come clean about the pasta: the pasta pictured below is called paccheri and while it looks beautiful in the photo, I totally preferred standard spaghetti for this recipe. The noodles took to the sauce so much better than the thick, dense paccheri. I’m sorry! It’s true. The spaghetti version just photographed worse than the paccheri!
You can use whatever pasta you love, but I highly recommend a thin noodle like spaghetti or angel hair that will blend more seamlessly with a light sauce like this one. More on pasta types and other swaps below. Enjoy!
italian sausage and rapini white wine pasta ingredients
pasta: The pasta I used in the picture is called paccheri and can be purchased easily at Target. I have to admit, paccheri would work much better as a ziti substitute in dishes calling for mounds of sauce and cheese: in this recipe, it absorbs the sauce and leaves you with a little bit of a dry situation. It works, but light pastas like spaghetti, linguini, angel hair, and bucatini would fare much better. You could even swap in rotini or oriecchette for a shorter noodle option- oriecchette never seems to appear when I am looking for it, but is a perfect option for this pasta if you can find it!
broccoli rabe: The growing season for broccoli rabe is springtime, so it should be in stores near May and through the summer, depending on your market. It may start looking a little sad in stores (yellowy leaves) which can be trimmed away before cooking. If you can't find rapini, you can swap in broccolini, kale, spinach, mustard greens, or hell, even plain broccoli. You don’t need to blanch kale and spinach if using, simply add to the skillet at the very end and stir in until softened. All these options make great substitutes and even additions to broccoli rabe, so don’t hesitate to try them out!
italian sausage: I use mild, but hot would be a fun and interesting way to jazz this pasta up. I always use links because then I can store any extra meat and use later in soups or between buns, but you can definitely use ground sausage or pork to make things a little easier! You can also use chicken sausage or even ground beef as variations; for vegetarian, simply omit the sausage (and I highly recommend adding more vegetables and sauteeing in the garlic-lemon mixture if doing so)
garlic: You want a lot, and if you love garlic, maybe even more than I suggested in the recipe. 2 cloves are a good starting point, but don’t be afraid to be generous.
red pepper flakes: Saute these with the garlic to open up the spicy flavor and impart it into the sauce early on. You can add more on top of the pasta once finished, too, for extra heat. Of course, it’s not mouth-on-fire spicy, just a nice kick.
white wine: Use a dry white wine that you love- probably one you’ll drink with dinner-such as a sauvignon blanc or chardonnay. I always use sauvignon blanc. If you don’t have any on hand, you can use chicken broth, vegetable broth, or grape juice. Just know, these won’t reduce like wine does, so add about half and simmer for a few minutes to heat through. You can also just add extra pasta water!
lemon: Small, but mighty: with how bitter broccoli rabe is, you’ll want this sweet and acidic touch to balance things out. You can squeeze on more towards the end if you find the juice disappeared in the reduction and the rapini is too bitter. Lean into the lemon.
butter: I originally wasn’t using butter, and adding it made this so much better. Don’t skip it unless you have to! It adds flavor and density to this otherwise light, invisible sauce. If you find the sauce too light, melt a tablespoon or two more of butter into the pasta to bulk it up further.
italian sausage and rapini white wine pasta pairing options
Ah, a dish that has it all: meat, carbs, veggies. What more do you need? A glass of wine, obviously. And, maybe, more veggies, a side salad, or some charcuterie:
grilled or roasted zucchini and yellow squash, with salt, pepper, and thyme
caesar salad, especially made with kale
crostini and charcuterie, especially with soft cheeses like brie and mild meats
cannellini beans, as an addition
pinot grigio, sauvignon blanc, gewurztraminer