Cavatappi with Sausage, Kale & Tomatoes

A superquick, supertasty weeknight meal. My husband had some credit with Amazon that, if I have the story straight, could only be used on Groceries (?) so he bought a pallet (!) of De Cecco cavatappi (and, quaintly/weirdly, a pallet of UK-style Heinz baked beans in cans that look like Mad Men props) so pretty much any pasta dish I've cooked up in the past couple of weeks has incorporated this corkscrew style. It works well here but that's not to say your favorite pasta shape wouldn't work just as well.



Cavatappi with Sausage, Kale, & Sundried Tomatoes
Serves 2 + modest leftovers for lunch

*3/4 lb cavatappi (or pasta of your preference)
*1/2 lb hot Italian sausage, casings removed or in patty form
*A couple large leaves of kale
*1/2 cup sundried tomatoes in oil, drained and sliced
*3 tablespoons butter
*2-3 cloves garlic, pressed or finely minced
*1 lemon
*Red pepper flakes
*S&P
*Chopped parsley (optional)

Put water on to boil for the pasta. In a small pan melt 3 tablespoons of butter, and lightly saute the garlic. Wash, dry and slice the lemon and place all the pieces but the ends in the butter and simmer over low heat for the duration of the pasta's cooking process. Remove lemon pieces (and strain if you'd like).

Meanwhile, brown the sausage until fully cooked, breaking it up into bite-size pieces, and then set aside. Remove the ribs from the kale, chop into manageable pieces, and saute softly in a stolen spoonful of lemon butter. Add some red pepper flakes, a crack of pepper and some salt, and a little bit of the pasta water to further wilt the kale. Set the kale with the sausage after about 6 minutes. After pasta has cooked to al dente, drain casually (you don't need to shake every last drop out of those coils) and return to the pot. Mix in the sausage, kale, lemon butter, and sundried tomatoes. S&P to taste. Squeeze the ends of the lemon over the mix to get the last drops of juice from the teensy bits of fruit flesh left. Garnish with chopped parsley if you please.