There’s nothing I love more than a giant bowl of pasta. But sometimes you don’t want the standard red sauce, so I opt for pastas like my “Turkey Sausage with Broccoli Rab Farfalle”, which is something I pretty much concocted after I got sick of Giada’s brilliant version, which has peas instead of broccoli, mushrooms, and doesn’t boast a light cream sauce.

It’s a hearty dish that tastes really excellent as left-overs and can keep pretty well in the fridge up to a week. I often make this in fall and winter when I have a few nights a week I’m out the door and need a quick dinner that I can reheat easy. This is one of them. Plus, turkey sausage is way healthier than pork sausage, or good for those of us inclined to avoid little piggies to eat (not for religious reasons, but for cuteness reasons).

As an avid cheese lover, I really like using a combo of Parmesan and Fontina for this one–it makes it nutty and creamy all at once. Plus, I’m a huge fan of lemon (which a lot of people aren’t), so I tend to use lemon juice and zest in the sauce and it gives it this fresh tang that makes the sauce feel lighter. Yums!

So, without further babble, my Turkey Sausage Broccoli Rab Farfalle

Ingredients

1 Box Dried Farfalle Pasta (that’s bow ties!)

1 Package Turkey Sausage–Sweet or Spicy depending on your taste

1-2 Small Bunches of Broccoli Rab

1 Cup Heavy Cream

The juice and zest of 1 lemon

Parmasean and Fontina Cheese

Salt and Pepper to taste

To Make Up

Set pot of water to boil; cook Farfalle about 10 minutes to al dente. In a large skiller, remove Turkey Sausage from casings and sautee over medium heat in one tablespoon of oil (a little oil is needed because turkey sausage doesn’t have the fat of regular pork ones, so it’ll stick to the pan if you don’t dash a bit), breaking up the turkey sausage into small bits with a wooden spoon as it begins to cook. After turkey sausage is cooked through (about 8 minutes) and browned a bit on the outsides, throw in the bunches of broccoli rab, sauteeing until tender, about 5 minutes. Add the juice of one lemon (or omit if you don’t like citrus) and zest to taste, add salt and pepper to taste. Cook a minute more. Add cup of heavy cream, cooking on medium heat until sauce has thickened a bit, about 8 minutes more. Add cheeses to taste.

Put Farfalle into a bowl and add in sausage, broccoli rab and cream sauce. Stir. Serve. Eat. Love. Eat again.

If anyone has any different incarnations or gives this a whirl, let me know how you like it!

Enjoy.