Roasted Cherry Tomato Penne

Directions

1. Preheat your oven to 400°F (200°C). Toss the tomatoes, onions, garlic, sausages, and olive oil together. Season to your taste with salt and pepper.

2. Transfer to a roasting pan and place in the oven. Roast until the tomatoes, onion, and sausages are lightly brown and smell amazing, 30 to 45 minutes. When the tomatoes are nearly done, bring a large pot of salted water to a full rolling boil. Dump in the penne and cook until edible, stirring occasionally. After 10 minutes or so fish out a piece and bite it.

At first it will be too firm, but in just a few minutes it will transform, so continue fishing and tasting until you like the texture. Pasta is best when it’s tender enough to eat but hasn’t become too soft. Great pasta retains lots of pleasing chewy texture.

3. While the pasta is cooking, stack a tall pile of basil leaves, roll it into a tight cylinder, and slice as thinly as possible. Slice the green onions as well. As the pasta finishes cooking, add a ladleful of the pasta water to the roasting pan.The moisture will dissolve any caramelized brown bits of flavour on the bottom of the pan.When the pasta is done, drain it and return it to the pot. Add the roasted sausages, onions, and tomatoes, scraping along every last bit of roasted flavour from the pan.Toss in the basil leaves and green onions and stir everything together. Serve and share!

Kitchen tip: Busy restaurant cooks pay no attention to the clock. They simply watch their food. Keep an eye on it. Make decisions. Watch for flavour. Wait for flavour. Stay vigilant and patient. The dissolving tomatoes and browning sausage will reward you with a deeply flavoured rustic pasta dish.

Photo and recipe excerpted from Chef Michael Smith's Kitchen: 100 of My Favourite Easy Recipes. Available at Chapters.Indigo.ca.