Ravioli with Sausage and Cream Ragu

 

As a general rule of thumb, I am not a fan of one-pot meals. They almost always require some sort of compromise in the interest of easy preparation. Well, this is a one-pot meal with no compromise. A simple, weekday meal that takes just 15 minutes. And, oh boy, it's really good.

The key to making this a one-pot meal for two is using fresh ravioli. Your grocery store will have it and you'll find it in the refrigerated section...typically near Dairy or Cheese. If you only have dried or frozen on hand, the recipe still works, but it will have to be a two-pot meal as you'll have to cook the pasta separately and add it later.

You can pick your favorite filling. I would recommend a cheese, mushroom or Italian sausage stuffed ravioli. I would stay away from seafood or chicken as they would not go well with the ragu. The beauty of fresh ravioli is that cooks up right in the ragu...no extra steps required. Buon appetito!

INGREDIENTS

1 tablespoon olive oil

1/2 small yellow onion, diced

1 pound hot Italian sausage, bulk

2 cloves garlic, minced

1, 15-ounce can of tomato sauce

1 tablespoon Italian seasoning

1/2 teaspoon salt

1, 10-ounce package of fresh ravioli

1/4 cup of heavy cream

Parmesan cheese

DIRECTIONS

1. Heat olive oil in a medium skillet. When oil shimmers, add onion and Italian sausage. Keep stirring and breaking up the sausage until onions are translucent and no pink remains in sausage (about 5 minutes). Add garlic and stir for 30 seconds.
2. Add tomato sauce, Italian seasoning and salt. Keep stirring until it is heated through.
3. Add fresh ravioli to the sauce. Stir and cover, keeping skillet at medium heat.
4. After 6 minutes, remove skillet cover and stir thoroughly. Remove skillet from heat and add cream, stirring again thoroughly. Serve and pass the Parmesan cheese for topping the dish off.

Wine pairing: Chianti Classico