The Ultimate Creamy Sausage Pasta

Ingredients

• 200 g mafaldine pasta (or your favourite shape)
• 4 pork sausages (skins removed)
• 4 garlic cloves (minced)
• 200 ml chicken stock
• 100 g mascarpone
• 60 g grated Parmesan (plus extra to serve)
• 1 tsp Dijon mustard
• 1 tsp dried thyme
• 10 g parsley (chopped)
• 1 tbsp olive oil (for frying)
• black pepper (to taste)
• salt (for pasta water)

Steps

1. 1

   Bring a large pan of salted water to the boil.

2. 2

   Add the pasta to the boiling water and cook until al dente. Reserve a mug of the pasta water before draining.

3. 3

   Meanwhile, heat the olive oil in a large frying pan over a medium-high heat.

4. 4

   Add the sausage meat to the frying pan, breaking it into small chunks with a wooden spoon. Leave it to brown well between stirring so you get plenty of crispy caramelised bits. Cook until golden.

5. 5

   Stir in the minced garlic and the dried thyme and cook for 30 seconds until fragrant.

6. 6

   Pour in the chicken stock, scraping up all the browned bits (fond) from the bottom of the pan with your spoon. Simmer for 2 minutes.

7. 7

   Stir through the mascarpone, 60g grated Parmesan, and Dijon mustard. Simmer gently for 2 to 3 minutes until the sauce is smooth and silky.

8. 8

   Add the chopped parsley to the sauce and stir well.

9. 9

   Add the cooked pasta to the pan and toss everything together until the pasta is thoroughly coated in the sauce.

10. 10

    If the sauce is too thick, loosen it with a splash of the reserved pasta water until it becomes glossy.

11. 11

    Finish with plenty of black pepper and an extra grating of Parmesan before serving.

Notes

Removing the sausage skins allows the meat to crumble and caramelize more effectively, creating better texture for the sauce. Ensure you reserve the pasta water as the starch helps emulsify the mascarpone sauce.

Nutrition per serving

• main
• pasta
• sausage
• creamy
• dinner
• comfort food
• baked