Bianca Verde: Why Heavy Cream Is My Friend - Page 2

Ingredients:

• 1 to 2 pounds of Italian sausage (I recommend Lavera's Italian Sausage from Krebs, Oklahoma)
• 2 packages of frozen, (or deli style) spinach tortellini
• 10 ounces (1 can) of sliced, black olives
• 10 ounces of chopped, sun-dried tomatoes
• 1 cup of diced prosciutto
• 2 1/2 cups of heavy cream
• 3 tablespoons of unsalted butter
• About 6 ounces of Parmesan cheese
• Good, extra virgin olive oil
• Six cups of water
• Salt
• White pepper
  

Directions:

1. Trim the casing off the sausage and slice the sausage into small medallions, about 1/2-inch thick.
2. Drizzle a small amount of olive oil into your favorite deep (make sure it's deep, you'll need the space) skillet; cook the sausage on medium heat.
3. While the sausage is cooking, bring six cups of water to a boil. Once you have a rolling boil, add the tortellini and cook to the package directions - usually about 6 to 8 minutes.
4. At the same time, continue cooking sausage until it's light brown.
5. After the sausage has cooked about 4 minutes, add the sliced olives and cook until tender, 1 to 2 minutes more.
6. Slowly add the diced prosciutto and cook another 2 minutes until prosciutto and sausage are about the same color.
7. Remove skillet from heat.
8. Carefully drain off most (but not all) of the grease - but leave sausage, olives, and prosciutto in the pan.
9. Return pan to heat, add cream, butter, and cheese.
10. Cook at medium heat for 2 to 3 minutes, stirring, then reduce heat to low until Alfredo sauce is properly thickened. (To test, dip a metal spoon into your sauce. If the sauce coats the back of the spoon, you're in business).
11. Once the Alfredo sauce has thickened, remove it from heat and set aside.
12. Remove pasta from heat and drain; but leave pasta in the pot.
13. Pour Alfredo sauce, sausage, olives, prosciutto mixture over tortellini.
14. Toss in sun-dried tomatoes and season to taste with white pepper and salt.

Serve with a crisp salad, Merlot, bread, and your favorite companion. Believe me, you'll never eat at McDonalds again.

Article Author: M. Scott Carter

M. Scott Carter is an Oklahoma City-based writer who understands the value of wind, rain and red dirt.

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