Umbrian-style pasta with sausage

Creamy pasta alla Norcina the perfect comfort food!

The traditional Norcia-style sausage – a specialty of Italy’s Umbria region – used for this pasta differs in flavour from most Italian-style sausages sold in North America (it doesn’t include fennel seed or hot pepper flakes, for example). As a workaround for this classic and incredibly delicious dish, I’ve come up with a sausage-like mixture made with fresh ground pork that I feel replicates Norcia’s sausages well, but if you prefer you could absolutely use Italian-style garlic sausages or sweet Italian sausages instead. You’ll need 12 oz/340 grams or about 4 regular-sized sausages, with the meat removed from the casing. I like to include cremini mushrooms and finish the dish with a pinch of truffle salt on each serving; these touches mimic the flavours imparted by the traditional use of shaved black truffles on top, appropriate given that Umbria is the world capital of truffle production. If you are planning on leftovers, scoop out and reserve additional pasta cooking water to use when reheating pasta. And just in case you’re wondering whether or not the good folk of Norcia really know their sausages, be aware that the town itself gave rise to the Italian term for pork butcher – famous across Europe – which is norcino.

Ingredients

Sausage Mixture:

12 ounces (340 g) coarsely ground pork
2 teaspoons (5.5 g) finely minced fresh garlic (1 large clove)
1 teaspoon finely minced fresh rosemary leaves
1 1/2 teaspoons fleur de sel or kosher salt
3/4 teaspoon (2 g) freshly ground black pepper
Pinch freshly grated nutmeg
2 tablespoons (30ml) dry white wine

Pasta:

2 tablespoons (30ml) extra-virgin olive oil, divided
12 oz (340 g) sausage meat, prepared as above
10 oz (284 g) cremini mushrooms, sliced (about 10 medium)
1 small yellow onion (about 3.5 oz /100g), diced
2/3 cup (158 mL) dry white wine
1 1/2 cups (375 mL) heavy cream
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
12 ounces (340g) dried pasta (I like penne or riccioli)
1 1/4 cups (112 g) freshly grated Pecorino Romano or Parmesan, divided
Freshly grated nutmeg, for serving

Method

Prepare the sausage mixture in advance by using your very clean hands to combine thoroughly the pork, garlic, salt, pepper, rosemary, nutmeg and wine in a bowl. Cover and refrigerate the meat for 1- 48 hours before cooking.
When ready to cook, remove sausage mixture from refrigerator and shape it into a large patty approximately 1/2 inch (1.25 cm) thick. Heat 1 tablespoon (15 mL) of the oil in a very large skillet (big enough to eventually hold the cooked sausage meat, mushrooms, onions and cooked pasta) over medium-high heat. Add sausage meat and cook undisturbed, letting the bottom side brown, for 3-4 minutes then flip over (in sections, if that’s easiest) and cook 2-3 minutes more. Once both sides have browned, use a wooden spoon or sturdy spatula to break the sausage patty into small clumps. Push the meat to one side of the pan and add mushrooms; cook, stirring often until they have released their moisture and are beginning to brown (about 3-4 minutes). Pile the mushrooms on top of the cooked sausage meat and add remaining more oil to the pan; add onions and reduce heat to medium. Cook, stirring often, until softened and translucent (about 3-4 minutes).
Increase heat to medium-high and add wine. Bring to a simmer and cook, swirling pan and scraping up any stuck-on bits with wooden spoon, until wine is reduced by roughly half, about 30 seconds.
Add cream and adjust heat until the mixture comes to a gentle simmer. Cook, stirring often, until sauce has thickened slightly (about 3-4 minutes). Season lightly with salt and pepper to taste, then cover pan and reduce heat to your lowest setting to keep sauce warm while preventing it from reducing further. At this point the sauce can be refrigerated for up to 48 hours, if you wish, then reheated prior to cooking pasta.
Meanwhile, in a pot of salted water, cook pasta until not quite al dente. Scoop out and reserve 1 cup (250 mL) of the cooking water then drain pasta using a colander.
Add pasta to sauce along with 1/2 cup (125 mL) of the reserved pasta cooking water and stir to combine. Cook over medium heat for 2 minutes, stirring constantly, until sauce has thickened and is coating the noodles. Add additional pasta water a tablespoon (15 mL) at a time as needed to transform the sauce into a consistency you like.
Remove pot from heat and stir in 3/4 cup (67 g) of the grated cheese, stirring to incorporate. Divide the pasta mixture between 4-6 warmed serving bowls. Top each bowl with a little freshly ground black pepper, a pinch of grated nutmeg, remaining cheese, and truffle salt (if using), or a pinch of fleur de sel. Serve hot.

Serves 4-6 (depending upon size of servings).