Ricky has a green thumb when it comes to grape tomatoes. Year after year these sweet temptations show off for him. His bounty is plentiful.
With multiple clusters of tomatoes sprouting forth for most of the summer, Ricky has had to create dinners using these tasty morsels. This recipe is as quick and easy as it gets. And it gives us Italian sausage lovers, a summer dinner “go to”. Italian sausages have their own distinct flavor and a lot of it is in the spices used. I think of Italian sausage as an any season meat choice. One of my summer favorites is ITALIAN SAUSAGE, PEPPER and ONION on FRENCH BREAD . And this recipe is another summer favorite of mine. The sausage meat and rendered drippings makes this dinner recipe a full and satisfying meal. And it only takes minutes. Sweet grape tomatoes add a light, fresh bite. For added flavor Ricky uses oregano. Oregano pairs well with tomato and fresh oregano is especially good in this recipe.
Here’s what YOU WILL NEED:
| 1 pound Italian flavored sausage meat OR 1 pound Italian sausages taken out of the casings |
| Grape tomatoes: Ricky used about 3 dozen which is about a pint and a half to 2 full pints |
| 2 rounded tablespoons of fresh chopped oregano OR 1 teaspoon dried |
| 1/2 teaspoon salt |
| 1/4 teaspoon pepper |
| 4 tablespoons olive oil |
| 1/4 cup pasta water |
| 1/2 to 1 pound of bowtie pasta (farfalle) |
The picture above shows fresh oregano on the plate with the tomatoes, and dried in the white bowl.
If you are going to use dried oregano instead of fresh, add it into the sausage meat as you are cooking it. Dried herbs need time to rehydrate, and this is a very quick cooking meal, so it’s best not to wait until you add the tomatoes. The quick cooking time is one of the reasons that fresh oregano is the better choice for this recipe. It is a milder flavor also. We have a post which talks about the differences between fresh and dried herbs, and when one or the other is the better choice. If you want to know more take a look at Cooking with Herb. If you choose to use a fresh herb in a recipe, purchased from the produce department, don’t waste what you don’t use. Take it out of the plastic container and let it dry out in a basket or even on a paper towel put somewhere out of the way. It’s neat using your own dried herbs.
How much pasta pasta to use in this recipe is a personal choice. We used 1/2 pound in the batch pictured in our feature. I like a larger potion of sausage and tomatoes with every serving, but there is plenty of flavor to go around if you use a full pound. By adding a full pound of pasta you can probably stretch out 6 meals, rather than the 4 we use in our nutritional values.
This is WHAT TO DO:
Wash the tomatoes, then cut in half lengthwise.
Cook the pasta, as directed on the package. Before you drain the pasta, reserve 1/4 cup of the pasta water. If the bowtie pasta is done before the the sausage and tomato mixture, put the drained pasta back in the pan and add a splash of olive oil. Gently mix the olive oil in, so all the pasta gets coated. This will keep it from sticking together.
Warm a heavy bottomed, 10 or 12 inch skillet on medium high heat. Add enough olive oil to cover the bottom of the skillet (about 4 tablespoons), then add the sausage meat in large chunks. Break the sausage meat up into small chunks with a spatula as it is cooking.
ACTION SHOT check out the steam.
Cook the meat until the pink is gone. Don’t brown it. Do not drain the fat from the skillet. It provides one of the primary flavors of this dinner recipe.
Once the sausage meat is cooked through, add the sliced tomatoes, oregano, salt and pepper.
Grape tomatoes sliced in half, fresh oregano, salt and pepper are added to the cooked sausage meat. Full steam ahead 🚢.
Still on medium high heat, cook the mixture until the grape tomatoes are barely tender. Don’t let them get mushy. You want to keep that fresh tomato taste. Stir often so they will cook evenly. It should take 5 minutes or less. Remove the skillet from the heat and let sit for another few minutes so the juice in the tomatoes continues to render.
When the pasta is done, reserve 1/4 cup of the pasta water and mix it into the grape tomato mixture after removing from the heat. Then, lightly turn the bowtie pasta into the tomato and sausage mixture.
Grape Tomatoes and Sausage with Bowtie Pasta
Ingredients
- 1 pound sausage meat italian flavored
- 1 ½ pints grape tomatoes use more if you like
- 2 tablespoons fresh oregano or 1 teaspoon dried oregano
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon pepper
- 4 tablespoons olive oil
- ¼ cup pasta water
- ½ pound bowtie pasta usually sold as farfalle
Instructions
Prepare Ingredients
- Cut the grape tomatoes in half lengthwise.
- If you are using Italian sausage links, take the casing off.
Cooking Instructions
- Get the water for the bowtie pasta on to boil. This sauce and the bowtie pasta take about the same time to cook. Prepare as directed on package. When cooked, reserve ¼ cup pasta water before draining. If pasta is done before the sauce mixture, add a splash of olive oil to the pasta and mix it in to keep it from sticking together.
- Warm a skillet on medium high heat and cover the bottom with olive oil.
- Add sausage meat to to the skillet in large chunks. While cooking break into smaller pieces. Cook until meat is no longer pink, but not browned. If you are using dried oregano, add it to the sausage while cooking to allow it to rehydrate.
- When sausage is cooked, add the grape tomatoes, fresh oregano (if you haven't used dried), salt and pepper. Stay at the stove and move the ingredients in the skillet around. Cook until grape tomatoes are just getting softened, it will only take minutes. Take the skillet off the heat. Let it rest for a few minutes so more of the juice from the tomatoes can render.
- Mix the reserved pasta water into the sausage and tomato mixture.
- Add cooked and drained bowtie pasta to the skillet. Mix thoroughly. Serve