Fettucine with Sausage Ragu

This recipe was on The Chew made by Mario Batali. It had a nice but not too spicy kick and the fresh peas were a great touch of color, texture and flavor! Don't skip them! I didn't have the fennel pollen so tried the best I could to crush the seed.

• 1 1/2 pounds Fettuccine
• Salt
• Extra-Virgin Olive Oil
• 1 pound Hot Italian Sausage (casing removed)
• 1 tablespoon Thyme Leaves
• 1 tablespoon Oregano Leaves
• 2 Garlic Cloves (thinly sliced)
• 1 cup White Wine
• 1 cup Fresh Peas
• 1 teaspoon Crushed Red Pepper Flakes
• 14.5 ounce can Whole Peeled San Marzano Tomatoes (crushed)
• 1 Yellow Onion (thinly sliced)
• 1 teaspoon Ground Fennel Seeds or Fennel Pollen
• Freshly Cracked Black Pepper
• Freshly Grated Parmigiano-Reggiano (to serve)

Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Cook Fettuccine 1 minute less than package instructions. Drain and reserve a cup of Pasta Water.

Heat a large skillet with a few tablespoons of Olive Oil and add Sausage. Cook, breaking up with a potato masher into small pieces, until Sausage is crispy. Add the Herbs and the Garlic and cook. Once fragrant, about a minute, deglaze with the White Wine scraping up brown bits from the pan.

Add the Peas, a pinch of Crushed Red Pepper Flakes, Fennel Seeds or Pollen, the Tomatoes, and the Onion. Bring to a boil. Cook until sauce has thickened slightly, about 10 minutes.

Remove all but about 1 1/2 cups of Sauce and reserve for another use. Add the cooked noodles to the pan and toss with the Sauce, thinning with reserved Pasta Water as needed.

Garnish with freshly grated Parmigiano-Reggiano to serve.