When the day gets away from me and I haven’t had time to plan dinner, I turn to this quick and flavorful meal. The sauce is light but has layers of flavor with fat, heat, and acid. The orecchiette absorbs the sauce evenly and the broccoli rabe is bright and acidic from the fresh lemon. Using fully cooked andouille sausage cuts the cooking time down but adds enough heat to the dish for a well balanced meal. The trick to this pasta is reserving pasta water and adding it to the sauce and emulsifying it with butter for a light yet creamy sauce. Top with grated parmesan reggiano cheese for more salinity. 

Orecchiette with Broccoli Rabe and Chicken Andouille
Serves 4-6

Ingredients
12 ounces fully cooked chicken andouille sausage, sliced
2 tablespoons olive oil
6 cloves garlic, minced
1 shallot, thinly chopped
1 cup chicken broth
6 tablespoons butter
2 bunches broccoli rabe, cleaned with lower stems removed
Juice of 2 lemons
Salt and black pepper, to taste
½ teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
1 pound orecchiette
Grated parmesan reggiano cheese, garnish 

Directions 

1. Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Add pasta and cook according to the directions on the package. Drain, reserving 1 cup of pasta water, and set aside. Return pasta to the pot. 
2. Meanwhile, in a large skillet, heat olive oil over medium-high heat and brown sausage on each side, heating through. Use a slotted spoon and remove sausage from the pan; set aside on a plate. 
3. Reduce skillet heat to medium and melt 2 tablespoons butter. Add garlic and shallots and sauté until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Add chicken broth and deglaze the pan, scraping all the brown bits on the bottom of the pan. Bring to a low boil. 
4. Add broccoli rabe and crushed red pepper flakes, then season with salt and black pepper. Reduce to simmer and cover, then cook for 5 minutes or until broccoli rabe is tender. Remove cover and add sausage, tossing to coat with sauce. 
5. Turn the pot with pasta on low heat and add the broccoli rabe and sausage sauce to pasta. Toss to coat, add ½ cup of pasta water and remaining butter, and stir to melt and thicken. Stir in lemon juice, adjusting seasoning to taste. 
6. Serve in bowls topped with grated parmesan reggiano cheese and warm crunchy bread. 

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