This hearty Italian pasta combines spicy Italian sausage with sweet fennel, onion, garlic, and crushed fennel seeds in a rich, creamy sauce. A little red pepper adds heat, while white wine, tomato paste, and Parmesan bring everything together. Use your favorite pasta shape—the sauce is substantial enough to work beautifully with almost any pasta.

No ratings yet

Pasta with Sausage and Fennel

Course: Dinner, Main Courses

Cuisine: Italian

Prep Time: 10

Cook Time: 36

Servings:

Calories: 632.8kcal

Print Recipe

Download PDF

Ingredients

3 tablespoons olive oil
3 cups fennel chopped (about 1 large bulb)
1½ cups yellow onion chopped
1¼ pounds Italian sausage casings removed
4 teaspoons garlic minced
½ teaspoon whole fennel seeds crushed
2 teaspoons crushed red pepper flakes or to taste
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
1 cup dry white wine or chicken broth
1 cup heavy cream
⅔ cup half-and-half
2 tablespoons tomato paste
1 pound pasta of your choice
½ cup fresh parsley leaves chopped
1 cup freshly grated Italian Parmesan cheese divided

Get Recipe Ingredients

Instructions

Heat the olive oil in a large heavy pot or Dutch oven over medium heat. Add the fennel and onion and sauté for about 7 minutes, stirring occasionally, until tender.
Add the sausage and cook for 7–8 minutes, breaking it apart with a fork, until nicely browned.
Add the garlic, crushed fennel seeds, red pepper flakes, 2 teaspoons salt, and 1 teaspoon black pepper. Cook for 1 minute, stirring frequently.
Pour in the white wine or chicken broth and bring to a boil. Add the heavy cream, half-and-half, and tomato paste. Bring the sauce back to a boil, then reduce the heat and simmer for about 20 minutes, until the sauce has thickened.
Meanwhile, bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Cook the pasta according to the package directions until al dente. Reserve about ½ cup of the pasta water, then drain the pasta.
Add the drained pasta to the sauce and stir well to coat. Cook over low heat for about 5 minutes, allowing the pasta to absorb some of the sauce. If the sauce becomes too thick, add a little of the reserved pasta water.
Remove from the heat and stir in the parsley and ½ cup of the Parmesan.
Serve hot in shallow bowls with the remaining Parmesan sprinkled over the top or served on the side.

Click for a Step by Step Cooking Mode

Nutrition Disclaimer

Art of Cooking Recipes (Paulson Pursuits} is not a dietician or nutritionist, and any nutritional information shared is an estimate. If calorie count and other nutritional values are important to you, we recommend running the ingredients through whichever online nutritional calculator you prefer. Calories can vary quite a bit depending on which brands were used.