Orecchiette with Sausage and Spinach

Sometimes we all crave a bowl of steaming hot pasta. Is it just me or does it feel like a warm hug? This Orecchiette with Sausage and Spinach recipe is that type of comfort food.

Orecchiette is little bowl shaped pasta that is ideal for scooping up thick sauces. I like to use orecchiette when there are little chunks of meat or vegetables that you want to get in each bite. Between the crumbled sausage and the spinach, orecchiette is definitely the way to go with this recipe.

The sauce itself is a tomato based sauce and it get’s a hint of sweetness from some balsamic vinegar simmered right into the onions and garlic. And to finish the sauce off I add some mascarpone cheese for a silky texture. So grab a fork and some good bread for dipping and let’s make Orecchiette with Sausage and Spinach.

About the Ingredients

Orecchiette – a small bowl shaped pasta that is great for thicker sauces because the concave shape help scoop up little bits of goodness.

Onion and garlic – chopped small.

Balsamic vinegar – a little goes a long way. Keep in mind that this is one of those ingredients, like cooking with wine, where quality matters. A good balsamic vinegar is a little more expensive but when you only need a little the expense goes a long way.

Sausage – a pound of sweet Italian sausage removed from their casings.

Crushed tomatoes – one large 28oz can. This is a pantry staple and I highly recommend always keeping a few on hand.

Salt and pepper – to taste but personally I like to be a little on the salty side to compliment the sweetness of the maple syrup.

Mascarpone cheese – totally under utilized, this cheese is delicious. It tastes like a creamier, smoother, more mild version ricotta. Don’t skip this ingredient. When it melts into the sauce it creates a silky rich texture.

Spinach – baby spinach or whole leaf spinach coarsely chopped.

How to Make Orecchiette with Sausage and Spinach

Begin by setting a pot of water to boil and then cooking your orecchiette to al dente. Once the pasta is cooked, drain it in a colander and set it aside.

While your pasta cooks you can make the sauce. Start by chopping an onion and sautéing it in a medium size sauce pan. Next add a little bit of garlic and a splash of balsamic vinegar. The balsamic vinegar needs to simmer for a couple of minutes to sweeten up and thicken just slightly. This will give your sauce that little hint that makes people ask “what is that I’m tasting” without being overwhelming recognizable.

Next, remove the sausage meat from the casings and crumble the meat right into the onions. Continue crumbling and cooking until you don’t have any large chunks and the meat is browned all the way through.

Now pour in the canned tomatoes and season the sauce with salt and pepper. The tomatoes need to simmer to blend with the other flavors in the pot and mellow out their acidity so raise the heat. Stir in some mascarpone cheese to add richness too. Let everything simmer for about 10 minutes.

The final step is to add the spinach to the sauce and stir it until wilted (about 90 seconds.) Your sauce is now ready to be spooned over the hot orecchiette and served.

Recipe Substitutions & Variations

A classic Italian pasta topping combination is sausage and broccoli. Try swapping out the spinach in this recipe for broccoli (or broccoli rabe!) Broccoli takes longer to cook than spinach does so you’ll need to adjust the recipe just slightly:

• Sauté the onion and add the garlic as described in the recipe.
• Add broccoli florets to the pan with 3 tablespoons of water.
• Cover the pan with a lid and steam for 4 minutes.
• Remove the lid and continue on with the recipe as written, omitting the sausage at the end.

Make Ahead Instructions

Tomato based sauces are easy to make ahead of time and reheat as good as new. I’d even argue that they get better with time (which is why really great tomato sauces simmer on the stove for long periods of time, so the flavor deepens.)

To make this sauce ahead of time, prepare it as written in the recipe but don’t add the spinach yet. Let the sauce cool to room temperature before moving it to the refrigerator in an airtight container. When you’re ready to reheat it, warm it on the stove in a sauce pan and bring it to a simmer. Add the spinach now and once wilted serve immediately.

Refrigerate this sauce up to 5 days and then discard any sauce that remains.

How to Freeze Orecchiette with Sausage and Spinach

It is best not to freeze the pasta itself. Instead, make the sauce ahead of time by following the Make Ahead Instructions above. Then freeze the sauce for up to 2 months.

When you’re ready to reheat and serve your dish, defrost the sauce in it’s sealed container by submerging the container in room temperature for 1-2 hours or until the sauce is thawed. Then pour the sauce into a sauce pan, bring to a simmer, and add the spinach to wilt. Serve immediately over freshly boiled pasta.

FAQ’s and Recipe Tips

The Recipe for Orecchiette with Sausage and Spinach

The recipe is attached below for easy downloading and printing.  If you test it out be sure to leave a note in the comments below. I’d love to hear what you thought and what shape pasta you used. Enjoy!

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