Itailan Skillitini

I am in a rut. I haven't been cooking as much. Part of the reason is that groceries are almost as expensive as just eating out. At the end of a long day, why cook when you can go out for the same amount? Other than the fact I love to cook and I hate the hassle of getting back out in Houston traffic for dinner...

Sorry. I just needed to rant a little bit.

After getting back in town from Palestine, I hit the grocery store for the next 2 nights of food (and spent $50... ugh.) Then I got in the kiddie pool with 2 magazines and chilled out for an hour. That was nice.

We had some rather pricey bell peppers from Central market that were going soft and I couldn't let that happen. I had a hankering for good ole spaghetti and meatballs - so something sprang to mind while looking through my Bon Appetit cookbook... skillitini!

I went to the store for about 10 items (plus magazines and hair gel for Lee) and started on my spaghetti sauce.
I am not always a secretive person, but I am not ready to let go of my spaghetti sauce recipe. Everyone has one, and yours will work fine for this meal. So - get the sauce simmering and then move on to the rest of the meal -While that simmered, i cut the bell peppers (one red and one green) and put the pasta water on to boil. Then I started on the italian sausage. I deglazed the pan towards the end with a little white wine - courtesy of my Target Wine Cube.
(Thank you Lee, for stirring...)
Then I added some pasta and a few ladles of sauce.Get it mixed a little and then add the remaining noodles and as much sauce as you like. My vision of having leftover sauce to thaw from the freezer on a night when Lee is out vanished as I found myself pouring all the sauce in the pan. I can't help it, I LOVE sauce.
I had started some French Bread in the breadmaker earlier in the afternoon, so I served that with a little butter on the side and it made for good scoopage!
I followed up with a very complicated dessert:I had them left over from the pie I made from the 4th.

Recipe for Breann's Italian Skillitini

1 package Italian sausage links, casings removed
1 large red bell pepper
1 large green bell pepper
Onion - if there is not any in your sauce, slice one thin for the skillet
1/4 cup dry white wine
1 pd small whole grain pasta
grated Parmesan, Asiago, or Romano cheese (or a blend!)
Fresh basil, chopped
4 - 6 cups of spaghetti sauce, or more.. or less... your preference

Place large pot of water on stove to boil for the pasta.
In a large skillet (this is where I love my Rachael Ray huge oval skillet), start sauteeing the sausage in whole links until brown and almost cooked through. Once well browned, remove to a cutting board and allow to rest. By now the noodles are probably ready to go in the water or may even be boiling.
Throw sliced bell peppers and onions (if needed) to the same skillet and cook until soft. Slice sausage and throw back into skillet with peppers.
Drain pasta.
Once the sausage is cooked through, add some pasta to the skillet and stir in well. Start ladeling the sauce in, about 4 good sized ladels and get mixed well. Add the remaining pasta, then sauce, and let simmer for a few minutes to allow to merry together!
Sprinkle with cheese and basil and serve in a large bowl with a huge piece of french bread for scooping.