Drunken Italian Noodles

First and foremost, sorry for the late posting on this one, but yesterday was Mardi Gras y'all, and those hurricanes were not going to drink themselves.

So a few weeks ago I decided to go above and beyond and go way way out of my comfort zone and try to do this.

This recipe that involves coring bell peppers, cutting an onion and mincing garlic.

I looked at this thing and shuddered.

And then said, "Get it together, Laura, you can do this."

So I poured a glass of wine, turned on some music and had my way with those bell peppers.  After looking at YouTube to figure out how to do it.  Oh, yes.  That surely happened.  By the way, YouTube has videos for everything! 

Also something good to know?  An awesome garlic press will take you a long way.  Ours sucks.  I didn't get as much garlic as I wanted.  Because I love garlic.

Onto the recipe!

(from thecozyapron.com)

Italian Drunken Noodles 

Ingredients

 Olive oil
4 spicy Italian sausage links, casings removed
1 large onion, quartered and sliced thinly
1 ½ teaspoons salt
1 teaspoon Italian seasoning
½ teaspoon cracked black pepper
1 red bell pepper, cored and thinly sliced
1 yellow bell pepper, cored and thinly sliced
1 orange bell pepper, cored and thinly sliced
4 cloves garlic, pressed through garlic press
½ cup white wine (I used Chardonnay)
1 (28 ounce) can diced tomatoes with juice
2 tablespoons flat-leaf parsley, chopped
¼ cup fresh basil leaves, julienned, divided use
8 ounces Pappardelle noodles, uncooked

(I didn't use the parsley or basil.  Also couldn't find Pappardelle noodles, so I used Egg noodles, and it was just as delicious)

Directions

-Place a large, heavy-bottom pan or braising pot over medium-high heat; add about 2 tablespoons of olive oil, and once the oil is hot, crumble the spicy Italian sausage into the pan in small chunks (you want to keep the sausage fairly chunky), allowing it to brown in the oil for a few moments on each side; once the crumbled sausage is browned, remove it from the pan/pot with a slotted spoon and place into a small bowl to hold for a moment; next, add the sliced onion into the pan with the sausage drippings, and allow it to caramelize and become golden for roughly 5 minutes or so, stirring to keep it from burning (add a touch more olive oil, if necessary); once the onion starts to become golden, add the salt, Italian seasoning and cracked black pepper, and stir to combine, then add in the sliced bell peppers, and allow those to saute with the onion for about 2 minutes until slightly tender and golden; next, add in the garlic, and once it becomes aromatic, add in the white wine and allow it to reduce for a few moments, until almost completely reduced; next, add in the diced tomatoes with their juice, and return the browned spicy Italian sausage back into the pan, and gently fold the mixture to combine; allow it to gently simmer for about 3-4 minutes to blend the flavors, then turn the heat off; to finish the sauce, drizzle in about 2-3 good tablespoons of the olive oil to create a silky, rich flavor, and add in the chopped parsley and about half of the julienned basil; stir, and keep warm while you prepare the noodles.

-Prepare the pappardelle noodles according to instructions on package; then, drain the noodles very well, and add them directly into the sauce, using tongs to gently toss and combine the pappardelle noodles with the sauce and all of the ingredients in it; check the seasoning to see if you need to add any additional salt or pepper.

-To serve, add equal portions of the “Drunken” noodles to bowls, and garnish with a sprinkle of the remaining julienned basil; you can even top with shaved Parmesan, if desired, and an extra drizzle of olive oil.

(in the pot)

(in my bowl)

 I added more wine than this thing said to.  We also added garlic toast to the meal, but the absolute best thing about this dinner?  It cost $16.  We ate this all week.  It was seriously seven helpings.  Do the math.  That's a little over $2 per meal.  It should be noted that the bottle of wine purchased was $3.  You don't need a fancy schmancy wine. 

You can't freaking beat that.  

And it was delicious.  A little complicated, but delicious.