Sweet & Spicy Italian Pasta
A semi-homemade and satisfying pasta dish
You will spend a great deal of time on this sauce’s base, but you will value the layers of sweetness and spice when it’s all said and done.
Ingredients
1 onion, sliced into rings and then halved (half moons)
1-2 bell peppers, sliced into super thin slices
4-5 cloves of garlic, grated
Your favorite cooked or smoked brat, sliced diagonally into 1/2 inch slices. I went with a spicy Italian chicken brat. I didn’t know brat style chicken sausage was a thing until we got these! Very yummy. If you get uncooked sausages, you’ll need to boil or braise them, then let them cool before slicing.
1/2 jar of your favorite jarred red sauce
Fettuccine (4 servings or so)
Depending on spice level of your sausage and desired spice level, a handful crushed red pepper
Chopped parsley for garnish
Freshly grated parmesan for garnish
Instructions
Ring and halve your onion (hit @chefmcshane instagram stories for tear-free onion tips!) In a large skillet, get some olive oil working on low heat (like, as low as your heat goes) and toss in your onions and bell peppers. Grate in the garlic and toss again. Sprinkle generously with salt, toss again, and cover. The salt draws out moisture from the onion so that they can steam, it also seasons the sauce from the very base layer.
Your onions, peppers, and garlic will go low and slow for at least 30 minutes. If at any point they begin to brown or burn, drop in a few spoonfuls of water and scrape up the bottom with a spoon.
Slice the sausage diagonally about 1/2 inch thick. In a separate smaller skillet, brown both sides. Cook fettuccine al dente according to box instructions in salted water.
When the peppers and onions are super soft, pour in that sauce and mix everything up. Allow the sauce to heat through (adding the crushed red pepper at this point if desired), then draw your cooked fettuccine over straight from the boiling water with tongs into the skillet. Toss all to coat.
Top with fresh parm and parsley.
