Rye Rags with Italian Sausage and Fennel

Rye is so dear to my heart, my truest love in the bread world, but turning it into a pasta was not something that had ever crossed my mind! Enter the brilliance of Gjelina's Travis Lett!

It is a revelation! The original contained shiitake mushrooms which I left out, but if you are a fan, include them. It is alchemy in the truest sense.

I realize there are lots of superlatives in this post, but this is not hyperbole. Even my husband's youngest daughter, who is a fanatic for true pasta, loved this dish. Speaking of which that version was made with veggie Italian sausage and it was just as good as with the pork variation. You can even go with spicy sausage or add red pepper flakes instead of black pepper.

Yes, the recipe looks long, but make the dough ahead of time and freeze or refrigerate. The sauce comes together in less than 30 minutes, and you will be rewarded for your advance preparation because it is that good!

Rye Rags with Italian Sausage and Fennel (adapted from Gjelina)
(serves 3-4)

Pasta
1 cup rye flour
1 cup all purpose flour (I used white spelt)
2 eggs, beaten
1-2 tablespoons water
flour for dusting

Sauce
2 Italian sausages (pork or veggie)
olive oil
1 large fennel bulb, stalks removed and end trimmed, diced
1/2 onion, diced
1 clove garlic, minced
1/2 cup white wine (Auslese style Riesling or Gewurztraminer)
1/2 cup vegetable stock
1 cup cream
1 tablespoon tomato paste
salt
pepper
5 walnut halves, chopped well
fennel fronds for garnishing
pecorino cheese, grated

To make the pasta, place the flours in a medium sized bowl and make a well in the middle. Add the beaten eggs and using a fork, combine well into a shaggy dough. Add a teaspoon of water at a time to make the dough hold together, but don't let it look wet. Use a rubber spatula to form it into a cohesive dough.

Sprinkle a cutting board or clean countertop with some white flour and knead the dough until it is silky and smooth, about 3 minutes. Wrap in a plastic bag or wrap and set aside to rest at room temperature for 20 minutes. You can also refrigerate at this time or even freeze the dough to use for later. Refrigerated, the dough will keep about 3 days. If you freeze it, defrost in the frig first and then bring to room temperature 30 minutes before working it.

Roll out the dough on a flour dusted workspace. Rye pasta will not stretch as well as regular egg pasta, but it will roll out thin easily. Cut into irregular shapes like torn rags. Cover with a dish cloth and set aside until ready to cook.

Heat a large skillet over medium heat for 2-3 minutes and add oil, swirling the pan to coat the bottom. Add garlic and onion and salt and cook for 2-3 minutes until onion begins to turn translucent. If using pork sausage, remove casing and pinch out 1/2 inch pieces into pan and sautee until nearly cooked through, 5-7 minutes, turning to brown. Add fennel and sautee for 2-3 minutes then add wine to deglaze pan, scrapping up stuck bits. After wine is cooked off, add stock and turn heat down to medium low and allow fennel to blanch in stock for 4-5 minutes. Once stock reduces, add tomato paste and stir to combine. Add cream and lower heat to simmer and allow sauce to cook for 3-4 minutes to allow flavors to marry.

Bring a pot of well salted water to boil and drop in pasta, stirring to ensure none stick to bottom. Once water returns to boil cook pasta for another 2 minutes then drain, reserving 1/4 cup of cooking water. Add rags to sauce in skillet and allow to cook in the sauce for 2-3 minutes, adding pasta cooking liquid to help thicken as needed. Season with salt and pepper and garnish with walnuts, grated pecorino romano and chopped fennel fronds.

Wine Pairing Suggestions: Auslese style Riesling (touch of sweetness) or Gewurztraminer or earthy Pinot Noir.

Hugs!