Sausage and Broccoli Rabe Pasta

You can never go wrong making pasta for dinner for your Nanny Family. The toddler I care for really loves this recipe. This is a quick and easy recipe with the pasta, veggie, and protein all in one dish.

You Will Need:

1 lb sweet Italian sausage
1 lb broccoli rabe, trimmed, stems removed
1 lb pasta
3 to 4 garlic cloves
2 tablespoonsextra virgin olive oil
salt and pepper, to taste
grated parmesan cheese to taste

What to Do:

1. Place sausage in a large skillet over medium heat and, using a wooden spoon, cook until brown and crumbly.

2. Meanwhile, bring at least 4 quarts of lightly salted water to boil and add broccoli rabe and cavatelli. Cook until pasta is done, approximately 11 minutes. Before draining, reserve approximately 2 cups of pasta cooking water.

3. When sausage is done, remove from skillet with a slotted spoon.

4. Add extra virgin olive oil to skillet drippings and cook over medium heat until warm. Add sliced garlic and cook until lightly golden (about 1 minute).

5. Add about 1 cup of pasta cooking water to skillet and cook for 1 minute more.

6. Add drained pasta and broccoli rabe to skillet. Stir to combine and add reserved sausage.

7. Add salt, pepper, and cheese to taste. Stir to combine again.

8. Simmer for 2 minutes or so. If too thick, add more of the reserved pasta cooking water until desired consistency.

9. Add more Parmesan cheese before serving.