When I saw Tyler Florence on the the Food Network making his Orecchiette with Broccoli Rabe, Clams, and Sweet Italian Sausage, I instantly recognized it as a riff on the classic Linguine with White Clam Sauce. All the traditional ingredients are there — the clams of course, and butter, garlic, Parmesan cheese and parsley. The addition of Italian sausage brings a hearty meatiness that amps up the flavor in a big way, and cooking the broccoli along with the pasta makes this the perfect one-dish meal, no salad or sides required.
I’ve made a few changes to make this my own. First, I substituted milder broccolini for the bitter broccoli rabe. Next, I used chopped canned clams in place of the littlenecks. The chopped clams disappear into the dish, and their juices provide most of the liquid for the sauce, giving the entire dish a much brighter, brinier flavor than it had with the clams just sitting on top. (I’m realizing now that you can’t see the clams at all in these photos, but they’re in there!)
And finally, I switched out the orecchiette for strozzapreti, because I like the way the twig-like shape of the strozzapreti mirrors the stalks of the broccolini. You can of course substitute whatever shape of short pasta you have on hand, but I wouldn’t use a pasta with long strands such as linguine – it would be too hard to pick up on your fork, with all the big chunks of sausage and branches of broccolini.
Making this ahead and what to do with leftovers:
- Pasta dishes such as this are best prepared just before serving, and enjoyed when the pasta and sauce are just melded.
- My variation on this dish is scaled to serve 2 (although it’s easily multiplied). If you should end up with leftovers they can be revived with a sprinkling of hot water and a brief turn in the microwave, but would also be great re-purposed in a Pasta Omelet.
This recipe is adapted from the Food Network.
Strozzapreti with Sausage, Clams and Broccolini
Ingredients
- Extra-virgin olive oil
- 4 to 6 ounces sweet or hot Italian sausage
- 2 teaspoons minced garlic
- ½ teaspoon minced fresh thyme
- ¼ teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes (optional)
- 1/3 cup white wine
- One 6½-ounce can chopped clams
- 2 tablespoons unsalted butter
- Kosher salt
- 6 ounces strozzapreti or other short pasta such as cavatappi, orecchiette or medium shells
- 3 ounces trimmed broccolini or broccoli florets
- ¼ cup grated Parmesan cheese
- 2 tablespoons minced fresh parsley
Directions
- Step 1 Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Meanwhile, heat a large stainless or cast-iron skillet over medium heat (do not use a non-stick pan). Add a generous swirl of olive oil. Crumble the sausage into the skillet. Cook the sausage, breaking it up with the back of a spoon, until it’s thoroughly browned. Use a slotted spoon to remove the sausage to a plate and set it aside.
- Step 2 Add the garlic and thyme to the drippings in the pan, along with the crushed red pepper if using sweet sausage (omit the hot pepper flakes if using hot sausage). Cook for 1 minute longer.
- Step 3 Raise the heat to medium-high and add the wine. Cook for a couple of minutes until the wine is almost completely evaporated and the pan is deglazed.
- Step 4 Add the clams along with all the clam juice from the can. Bring the mixture to a boil, then reduce the heat to medium and cook the mixture at a strong simmer for 3 to 5 minutes, or until the broth is slightly reduced and thickened. Add the butter and whisk the sauce until the butter is melted and the sauce is glossy.
- Step 5 Meanwhile, once the water in the other pot comes to a boil, add a handful of kosher salt and stir in the pasta. Once the water returns to a boil, set a timer for 4 minutes less than the time listed on the package (the shortest time if there’s a range). When the timer goes off add the broccolini and keep boiling for 3 more minutes, so the total cooking time for the pasta is 1 minute less than the shortest time on the package, and the total cooking time for the broccolini is 3 minutes.
- Step 6 Drain the pasta and broccolini into a colander, then add them to the clam mixture along with the reserved sausage. Cook, stirring and tossing the mixture until the pasta has absorbed some of the sauce and is cooked al dente, and the broccolini is tender, about 2 minutes.
- Step 7 Remove the skillet from the heat to a heat-proof surface. Add the Parmesan and toss until the cheese is incorporated into the sauce.
- Step 8 Transfer the pasta and sauce to 2 wide shallow bowls. Sprinkle the dishes with the parsley, dividing evenly.
