Читать книгу 200 Easy Slow Cooker Recipes - Katie Bishop - Страница 46

This tasty dish is great for a mid-week supper, or served from a large platter when entertaining at home.

Preparation time: 10 minutes

Cooking time: 4¼–6¼ hours, plus cooking the pasta

Serves 4

400g (14oz) (about 6) fresh Italian sausages (most major supermarkets have an Italian variety in their sausage selection)

2 tbsp olive oil

1 tsp fennel seeds

1 red onion, peeled, halved and finely sliced

2 garlic cloves, peeled and crushed

1 x 400g (14oz) tin chopped tomatoes

2 tbsp concentrated tomato purée

1 bay leaf, broken

A small pinch of dried basil

100ml (3½fl oz) red wine

350g (12oz) dried pasta, such as tagliatelle or spaghetti

2 tbsp chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley

Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper

Parmesan cheese, to serve

Squeeze the sausage meat out of the sausage skins and roll the contents of each one into 6–7 little balls.

Pour half of the olive oil into the slow cooker dish. Warm the remainder in a large frying pan over a high heat, and when hot add the fennel and cook for about 30 seconds or until fragrant. Add the sausage balls to the hot frying pan and cook until browned all over. Using a slotted spoon transfer the sausage balls to the slow cooker dish.

Add the onion to the slow cooker dish together with the garlic, tomatoes, tomato purée, bay leaf, basil and wine. Cover with the lid and cook on low for 4–6 hours. Don’t be tempted to remove the lid during cooking.

When you are ready to eat, cook the pasta in a large saucepan of boiling, salted water according to the packet instructions or until firm to the bite (al dente). Drain the pasta, leaving a little of the cooking water (about 2 tablespoons) behind in the pan. Tip the pasta and reserved water into the sausage sauce and fold through together with the parsley. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Serve with a block of Parmesan cheese to grate over the top.

FAB FOR THE FREEZER

This sauce freezes really well and will keep for up to three months. Make sure you defrost it thoroughly before gently reheating on the hob (never in the slow cooker). Serve with freshly cooked pasta.