Shepherd's Rigatoni

Tonight's dinner was a beautifully simple pasta recipe from Lidia Bastianich's Lidia Cooks from the Heart of Italy, Shepherd's Rigatoni. The origin of the dish is what would be available to a shepherd out in the pasture while watching his sheep. I've added the seasonal vegetable, asparagus, to this dish for a pop of color and crunch.

Shepherd's Rigatoni
Kosher salt
1 1/2 lbs sweet Italian sausage, removed from casing*
1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
1/2 tsp red pepper flakes
1 lb rigatoni
1 pound asparagus, trimmed and cut into 1 inch pieces
2 cups fresh whole milk ricotta, drained overnight**
1/4 cup grated Grano Padano or Parmiggano-Reggiano,plus more for the table
1/2 cup loosely packed fresh basil, washed and leaves shredded

Fill the pasta pot with water; add salt, and heat to a rolling boil.

Crumble the sausage meat into a bowl, breaking it into small clumps with your fingers. Pour the olive oil into a large skillet over medium-high heat. Sprinkle in the red pepper flakes, let it toast for a few seconds, the scatter the sausage in the pan. Cook, breaking up any clumps, for 10 minutes or so, until it is all well browned and crisp. While the sausage is sizzling, drop the rigatoni into the boiling water and stir.

Meanwhile, when the sausage is sizzling, drop the rigatoni into the boiling pasta water; stir, and cook at the boil. When the sausage is browned and crisp, ladle about 1/2 cup of the pasta cooking water into the skillet, and deglaze the pan bottom, scraping up the browned bits. Season the sausage meat with the salt, and stir with the bit of moisture in the pan.

When the pasta is al dente, lift it from the pot, drain briefly, and drop it into the skillet. Toss the rigatoni and sausage together, then turn off the heat, and stir in the ricotta and grated cheese. Scatter the basil on top, and toss well to dress the pasta evenly. Heap the rigatoni in warm bowls, and serve immediately.

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Note: To reduce the calories of this dish, I substituted spicy Italian chicken sausage for pork sausage and part skim ricotta for whole milk ricotta.