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"Little Ears" Pasta

"Little Ears" Pasta

Serves 12 to 14 as a Side Dish or 4 as a Main

The backbone of this dish is orecchiette—a round-shaped pasta named for the “little ears” they resemble. The pasta is tossed with bites of broccoli and sweet sausage, and then given a nice coating of basil-packing pesto and Parmesan cheese. It works wonderfully as a side dish for 6-8 hungry mouths (just in time for Thanksgiving), but you can also enjoy it as a meal for two any night of the week.

Tags:
Spicy
Allergens:
Wheat
Milk

Produced in a facility that processes eggs, milk, fish, peanuts, sesame, shellfish, soy, tree nuts, and wheat.

Total Time30 minutes
Prep Time
DifficultyEasy

Ingredients

/ serving 4 people

16 ounce

Baby Broccoli

18 ounce

Sweet Italian Pork Sausage

12 ounce

Orecchiette Pasta

(Contains Wheat)

1 teaspoon

Chili Flakes

4 ounce

Pesto

(Contains Milk)

½ cup

Parmesan Cheese

(Contains Milk)

Not included in your delivery

4 teaspoon

Olive Oil

Salt

Pepper

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Nutrition Values

/ per serving
Energy (kJ)1004 kJ
Calories240 kcal
Fat9 g
Saturated Fat2 g
Carbohydrate26 g
Sugar2 g
Dietary Fiber2 g
Protein14 g
Cholesterol45 mg
Sodium320 mg
Due to the different suppliers we purchase our products from, nutritional facts per meal can vary from the website to what is received in the delivered box, depending on your region.

Utensils

Large Pot
Strainer
Large Pan

Instructions

Prep
1

Wash and dry all produce. Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Cut any large broccoli florets into bite-size pieces. Remove sausage from casings.

Boil Pasta
2

Once water is boiling, add orecchiette to pot. Cook, stirring occasionally, until al dente, 9-12 minutes. Carefully scoop out and reserve ½ cup pasta cooking water, then drain.

Cook Broccoli
3

Heat a large drizzle of olive oil in a large pan over medium heat. Add broccoli and 4 tsp water. Cover and steam 3 minutes. Uncover and increase heat to medium high. Cook, tossing occasionally, until browned and tender, 3-6 minutes more. Season with salt and pepper. Remove from pan and set aside.

Cook Sausage
4

Heat another large drizzle of olive oil in same pan over medium-high heat. Add sausage, breaking up meat into pieces. Cook until crisp at edges and no longer pink, 4-5 minutes. Add a pinch of chili flakes (to taste) and cook another 30 seconds. TIP: Skip the chili flakes if anyone in your family is sensitive to spicy heat.

Make Sauce
5

Add orecchiette, broccoli, pesto, pasta cooking water, and half the Parmesan to pan. Toss until everything is well-coated and a thick sauce has formed, 1-2 minutes. Season with salt and pepper.

Finish and Serve
6

Transfer pasta mixture to a serving dish (or serve it straight from the pan). Sprinkle with remaining Parmesan and serve, letting everyone help themselves.

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