Orecchiette with Sausage, Corn, and Chilies

There are not a ton of pasta recipes that make since in the summer that you serve warm, but this one has al fresco night dinner written all over it. The recipe is an interesting mix of Mexican and Italian flavored that really turned out lovely. I wish I could take credit for this creativity, but Martha strikes again. This is also delicious as leftovers for lunch the next day. The market did not have orecchiette that day, but bow tie was just as good. 

Orecchiette with Sausage, Corn, and Chilies

Martha Stewart Living, June 2013

serves 4 to 6

Salt and Pepper

1 lb orecchiette pasta

8 oz sweet Italian sausage, casings removed

2 tablespoons unsalted butter

1 to 3 jalapeño or Fresno chilies, deseeded, very thinly sliced (keep some seeds if you like more heat)

4 1/2 cups fresh yellow corn kernels (from about 6 ears)

sour cream, for serving

fresh chopped cilantro, for serving

1. Bring a large pot of generously salted water to a boil. Add pasta and cook until al dente. Reserve 1 cup of pasta water, and then drain pasta. 

2. Meanwhile, cook sausage in a large non-stick skillet over medium-high heat, stirring to break up into bite size pieces, until golden brown and cooked through, 5 to 7 minutes. Transfer sausage to a plate; drain fat from skillet. Add butter to skillet, scraping up brown bits with a wooden spoon. Add chills and cook, stirring occasionally, 1 minute. Add corn and continue to cook until corn turns a deeper yellow and chilies are softened, about 2 minutes. Return sausage to pan along with pasta and toss to combine, adding enough pasta water to form a smooth sauce that coats the pasta. Season with salt and pepper, and serve with sour cream and cilantro. 

Enjoy! 

Erin