This orecchiette with sausage and broccoli is a quick and easy dinner your family will love. The Italian sausage flavors the sauce beautifully keeping the number of ingredients to a minimum. Plus, using milk instead of cream keeps the creamy sauce light. When I make this pasta dinner, I don’t expect leftovers!
Ingredients
- Olive Oil – Extra virgin or regular olive oil will work
- Mild Italian Sausage, casings removed or use bulk sausage (you can also use hot Italian sausage if you like it spicy)
- Garlic Cloves – minced
- Butter – We used regular salted butter
- Flour – All purpose
- Milk – Use whole milk if possible, if not use reduced fat, not skim
- Parmesan Cheese – Grate your own, if possible
- Orecchiette Pasta
- Salt – For the pasta water (we use kosher salt)
- Frozen Broccoli – Cooked to the package directions but give it about one minute less than the lowest suggested time. It’s best if not overcooked and drained well.
- Crushed Red Pepper – For serving, optional
Prep Work
- Bring a large pot of water to a boil over high heat.
- Remove the sausage from its casing and tear into small pieces, or use bulk sausage.
Make the sauce
Heat the olive oil in a large, deep skillet over medium to medium-high heat. Add the sausage, stir, breaking up large pieces using a wooden spoon or a spatula.
Cook the sausage for approximately 4-5 minutes, until browned, stirring frequently. Lower the heat to medium-low and add the garlic, cook 1 minute, stirring frequently.
Add the butter to the skillet, when the butter melts add the flour and mix well. Cook for 2-3 minutes, stirring almost constantly.
Add the milk, and Parmesan cheese to the skillet. Stir, while gently scraping up any bits off the bottom of the skillet, continue stirring until the ingredients are combined.
When the sauce comes to a simmer, cover the skillet and cook approximately 10 minutes, stirring occasionally. Keep the sauce at a simmer, if it starts boiling too vigorously, lower the heat.
While you’re cooking the sausage it’s possible that there will be bits that stick to the bottom of the skillet. That’s ok; actually, it’s a good thing. Those bits that stick to the bottom are caramelized meat – it’s called fond and it adds a ton of flavor to soups and sauces. In this recipe we will deglaze the skillet (lift the bits off the bottom) using milk. When you add the milk to the skillet, gently scrape the bottom using a wooden spoon and work in a circular motion.
Cook the orecchiette and the broccoli
While the sauce cooks, make the pasta and the broccoli.
Drop the pasta in the boiling water. Cook the pasta to package directions for al-dente. Remember to salt the water and to stir frequently in the beginning. Before you drain, reserve 1 cup of the cooking water, we’ll use it later. Drain the pasta.
Cook the frozen broccoli to package directions. I use the lowest cooking time recommended on the package, minus one minute. Drain the broccoli well. The broccoli is going in the skillet with the simmering sauce and piping hot pasta where it will finish cooking.
Finish the orecchiette with sausage and broccoli
While the pasta is still hot and steaming, add it to the sauce. Add the broccoli and about a ¼ cup of the reserved pasta water. Stir well until the ingredients are combined and coated with the creamy sauce. If the sauce is too thick, add a little more of the reserved pasta water and stir well.
Taste the pasta; add salt, if needed. Serve immediately with crushed red pepper and extra Parmesan cheese, if desired.
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Orecchiette with Italian Sausage and Broccoli
Ingredients
- ½ tablespoon Olive Oil
- 1 pound Mild Italian Sausage casings removed, or use bulk sausage
- 2 Garlic Cloves minced
- 2 tablespoon Butter
- 2 tablespoon Flour all purpose
- 2 cups Whole Milk
- 2 tablespoon Parmesan Cheese grated
- 12 ounces Orecchiette Pasta cooked to package directions for al dente
- 1-2 tablespoon Kosher Salt for the Pasta Water
- 10 ounces Frozen Broccoli cooked to package directions, drained
- Crushed Red Pepper for serving
Instructions
Prep Work
- Bring a large pot of water to a boil over high heat.
- Remove the sausage from its casing and tear into small pieces, or use bulk sausage.
Make the creamy sauce
- Heat the olive oil in a large, deep skillet over medium to medium-high heat. Add the sausage, stir, breaking up large pieces using a wooden spoon or a spatula. Cook the sausage for approximately 4-5 minutes, until browned, stirring frequently.
- Lower the heat to medium-low and add the garlic, cook 1 minute, stirring frequently.
- Add the butter to the skillet, when the butter melts add the flour and mix well. Cook for 2-3 minutes, stirring almost constantly.
- Add the milk, and Parmesan cheese to the skillet. Stir, while gently scraping up any bits off the bottom of the skillet, continue stirring until the ingredients are combined.
- When the sauce comes to a simmer, cover the skillet and cook approximately 10 minutes, stirring occasionally. Keep the sauce at a simmer, if it starts boiling too vigorously, lower the heat.
While the sauce cooks make the orecchiette pasta and the broccoli
- Drop the pasta in the boiling water. Cook the pasta to package directions for al-dente. Remember to salt the water and to stir frequently.
- Before you drain the pasta, reserve about a cup of the cooking water, we’ll use it later. Drain the pasta.
- Cook the frozen broccoli to package directions. I use the lowest cooking time on the package, minus one minute. Drain the broccoli well.
- While the pasta is still hot and steaming, add it to the creamy sausage sauce.
- Add the broccoli and about a ¼ cup of the reserved pasta water. Stir well until the ingredients are combined and coated with the creamy sausage sauce. If the sauce is too thick, add a little more of the reserved pasta water and stir well.
- Taste the pasta; add salt, if needed.
- Serve immediately with crushed red pepper and extra Parmesan cheese, if desired.
Megan Iannone
This recipe is part of our regular family make-ahead dinners for the week.
Elizabeth
Hi Megan, that’s fantastic to hear!
Libby
Is this good for freezing?
Elizabeth
Hi Libby,
You can freeze this dish, but the quality of the pasta and broccoli will not be the same when reheated. If you want to make it to freeze make sure the pasta is cooked al dente and do not overcook the broccoli.