An evergreen, purse-friendly midweek recipe for two.

For me, pasta is the ultimate comfort food. It’s so versatile, so simple and so tasty. It’s also even better when it doesn’t cost the earth to cook.

This warm, comforting sausage pasta recipe is perfect for an easy midweek meal without compromising on taste. The flavours are also evergreen; come rain or shine, I promise you’ll be happy to have this on your table. It’s a firm favourite in my household. And if you’re a lover of leftovers, it’s great to whack in Tupperware and take to work the next day!

I’ve chosen to use rigatoni for this recipe. It’s perfect for soaking up the tasty tomato sauce, and filling up with juicy sausage mince. But you could quite easily swap for any other type of pasta, such as penne, tagliatelle, fusilli or even farfelle.

Swapping normal sausages for flavoured alternatives, or even chicken sausages, can add your own twist to this recipe.

Recipe ingredients

• 1 pack of sausages (375g)
• 1 white onion
• 200g of pasta of your choice – I suggest rigatoni for this one
• 400g of chopped or plum tinned tomatoes
• 175ml of white wine (I’m no wine drinker but Pinot Grigio works a treat)
• 3 garlic cloves
• 5 cherry or plum tomatoes halved
• 1 tablespoon of tomato puree
• 1 teaspoon of fennel seeds
• 2 teaspoons of oregano
• 2 teaspoons of paprika
• 1 teaspoon of chilli flakes
• 1 teaspoon of honey
• Olive oil
• Salt & pepper
• Grated parmesan to top (optional!)

Cooking utensils

• A casserole dish / saucepan
• A saucepan
• Chopping board
• Sharp knives
• Cheese grater
• Sieve

1. Begin heating your olive oil in your casserole dish with a medium heat.
2. Finely chop your onions and garlic and pop to the side, you’ll need them in a moment.
3. Now it’s time to squeeze out your sausage mince from their skins into your hot pan. Squish the meat with your spoon to break it up and let it rest untouched for a minute.
4. Cook your sausage meat until it becomes nice and golden – this’ll take about 5 to 10 minutes. (Don’t worry about burnt bits on your pan, we’ll sort this out!)
5. Lower the heat slightly and add your onions, cooking until they have some colour.
6. Add your garlic, cook for 30 seconds, and then add your fennel seeds, cooking for another 30 seconds.
7. Pour in your wine and get scraping those flavourful bits of the bottom of your pan – honestly these are the good bits!
8. Simmer your wine until it’s almost absorbed into the meat and then add your fresh tomatoes, purée, paprika and oregano.
9. Give it a good stir, then add in your tinned tomatoes. Fill the empty can about a quarter way with water and tip in.
10. Bring the whole lot to a gentle simmer for about 15 minutes.
11. In the meantime, bring some salted water to the boil and cook your rigatoni according to packet instructions.
12. Drain your pasta, reserving a little bit of pasta water only if your sauce is looking a tad too thick for your liking.
13. Back to your sauce. Finish it off with your half a teaspoon of honey, chilli flakes and a splash pasta water (only if it’s too thick) and then pour in your pasta.
14. Serve in your favourite pasta bowl and enjoy – it’s inevitable you will!

Tasty tips!

• Spice it up a little more with some sweet chilli flavoured sausages!
• Serve this with some harissa garlic butter bread – it’s a winner.
• Get your greens in! You could easily add some spinach, broccoli or asparagus to this dish to boost your 5 a day.