Chicken and Sausage Ziti with Garlic Cream

By Sprig Originals ✓ · cooked up in Sprig

A weeknight trattoria plate: browned chicken and crumbled Italian sausage, with a garlic cream built right in the sausage fond and loosened with starchy pasta water so it clings to every tube of ziti. Spinach and cherry tomatoes go in off the heat at the very end, so the greens stay bright green and the tomatoes just barely burst.

Ingredients

• 12 oz ziti (or penne rigate)
• 2 tbsp kosher salt, for the pasta water

• 1 lb boneless skinless chicken breasts or thighs, cut into 3/4-inch pieces
• 3/4 tsp kosher salt
• 1/2 tsp black pepper
• 1/2 tsp dried oregano
• 2 tbsp olive oil
• 12 oz sweet or hot Italian sausage, casings removed

• 6 cloves garlic, thinly sliced
• 1/2 tsp red pepper flakes
• 1/2 cup dry white wine (or low-sodium chicken broth)
• 1 1/4 cups heavy cream
• 3/4 cup finely grated Parmigiano-Reggiano
• 1 cup reserved pasta water (approximate)

• 5 oz baby spinach
• 1 1/2 cups cherry or grape tomatoes, halved
• 2 tbsp unsalted butter, cold
• 1 tbsp chopped fresh basil or flat-leaf parsley
• extra Parmigiano-Reggiano and black pepper, for serving

Instructions

1. Bring a large pot of water to a boil and add 2 tablespoons kosher salt. Don't cook the pasta yet — you want the sauce and pasta finishing at the same time. Meanwhile, pat the chicken very dry and toss it with 3/4 teaspoon salt, the black pepper, and the oregano.
2. Heat a 12-inch skillet (not nonstick, if you have one — you want fond) over medium-high heat for 2 minutes. Add 1 tablespoon olive oil, then the chicken in a single layer. Cook undisturbed 3 minutes until browned, then stir and cook 2 to 3 minutes more until just cooked through. Transfer to a plate.
3. Add the remaining 1 tablespoon oil and the sausage to the same skillet. Break it into rough 1-inch pieces with a wooden spoon and cook over medium-high heat, 6 to 8 minutes, until deeply browned in spots and cooked through. Leave the browned bits stuck to the pan — that fond is the base of the sauce. If there's more than about 2 tablespoons of fat, spoon a little off.
4. Drop the ziti into the boiling water and cook 1 minute short of the package's al dente time (usually 9 to 10 minutes). Before draining, scoop out 2 cups of pasta water.
5. While the pasta cooks, lower the skillet heat to medium-low. Add the sliced garlic and red pepper flakes to the sausage and fat and cook, stirring constantly, 60 to 90 seconds, just until the garlic is fragrant and pale gold — do not let it brown or the cream will taste bitter.
6. Pour in the wine and scrape the bottom of the pan hard with a wooden spoon to dissolve every bit of fond into the liquid. Simmer 2 to 3 minutes until reduced by about half.
7. Add the heavy cream, bring to a gentle bubble, and simmer 3 to 4 minutes until slightly thickened. Off the heat, whisk in the 3/4 cup Parmesan a handful at a time until smooth.
8. Drain the pasta and add it to the skillet along with the chicken and any juices from the plate. Return to medium heat and toss for 1 to 2 minutes, adding reserved pasta water 1/4 cup at a time (about 3/4 to 1 cup total) until the sauce is glossy and coats the ziti without pooling.
9. Kill the heat. Add the spinach, tomatoes, and cold butter and toss for 30 to 45 seconds — the residual heat should just wilt the spinach while it's still bright green and warm the tomatoes without collapsing them. Taste and adjust salt.
10. Serve immediately in warmed bowls, showered with basil, extra Parmesan, and a heavy grind of black pepper. Cream sauces tighten fast, so a splash of pasta water at the table is fair game.

Chef's tips

Nutrition (per serving, estimated)

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