Name: Al Cantunzein’s Pappardelle With Sausage and Peppers
Yield: Serves 4
Ingredients: 2 yellow bell peppers; ½ small yellow onion; 3 Tbsp. extra-virgin olive oil; ½ lb. plain, mild sausage; Salt; 1 lb. fresh tomatoes; About 1 lb. homemade pasta, rolled out thin and cut into wide noodles, or dried store-bought pappardelle, rigatoni, or shells; 1 Tbsp. butter; ⅓ cup freshly grated Parmigiano-Reggiano

A table set with three plates of pappardelle with sausage and peppers.

Photo by Joseph De Leo, Food Styling by Simon Andrews

While I was growing up pasta was—and still is—one of my favorite things to eat. When my parents opened their cooking school in Bologna, there was a restaurant called Al Cantunzein (Bolognese for “in the little corner” because it was located in a tiny square near the city center) that would continue to serve course after course of homemade pasta dishes until one told them to stop. I was a teenager with a healthy appetite, and whenever we ate there, I was in heaven. My favorite was green and yellow pappardelle with sausage, peppers, and tomatoes. It is still one of my favorite pasta dishes, especially with homemade pappardelle, though I use only the yellow pappardelle. It is also wonderful with rigatoni or shells. The recipe below, which is almost the same as my mother’s in Essentials of Classic Italian Cooking, is how I make it now.

This recipe was excerpted from ‘Hazan Family Favorites’ by Giuliano Hazan. Buy the full book on Amazon.

Recipe information

Yield
Serves 4

Ingredients

2 yellow bell peppers

½ small yellow onion

3 Tbsp. extra-virgin olive oil

½ lb. plain, mild sausage

Salt

1 lb. fresh tomatoes

About 1 lb. homemade pasta, rolled out thin and cut into wide noodles, or dried store-bought pappardelle, rigatoni, or shells

1 Tbsp. butter

⅓ cup freshly grated Parmigiano-Reggiano

Preparation

Step 1
Peel the peppers, remove the core and seeds, and cut into 1-inch squares.
Step 2
Peel and finely chop the onion. Put it with the olive oil in a 12-inch skillet over medium-high heat. Sauté until the onion turns to a rich golden color, about 5 minutes.
Step 3
Remove the casing from the sausage. Add the sausage to the skillet and break it into small chunks with a wooden spoon. Once the sausage is lightly browned, 2 to 3 minutes, add the peppers, season lightly with salt, and continue cooking until they are lightly colored, 6 to 8 minutes.
Step 4
While the peppers are cooking, peel and coarsely chop the tomatoes. When the peppers are ready, add the tomatoes to the skillet. Season with salt and continue cooking until the tomatoes are no longer watery, 15 to 20 minutes.
Step 5
While the tomatoes are cooking, fill a pot for the pasta with about 6 quarts of water, place over high heat, and bring to a boil. When the tomatoes are ready and the water is boiling, add 2 Tbsp. salt to the pot, drop in the pasta, and stir until all the strands are submerged. Cook until al dente. Drain will, toss with the tomato sauce along with the butter and Parmigiano-Reggiano, and serve at once.