Hot Italian Sausage Pasta with Sauteed Onions Sweet Red Pepper and Chunky Marinara Sauce

Picture yourself at the local County 4-H Fair, a local arts and crafts festival, or even tailgating at your favorite sporting event and inhaling the inviting aromas wafting from the food tents and mobile backyard grills.  One of the most prevelant and, in my opinion, the most enticing smells are those which emit from tents grilling Italian sausages with sweet onions and peppers.  That smell, to me, is intoxicating and the anticipation is almost better than actually devouring the spicy grilled sausage with slow cooked caramelized onions and peppers.   This pasta dish, which will make your kitchen smell every bit as delicious, incorporates a spicy Italian sausage with sauteed onions and sweet red peppers with a homemade marinara sauce all served over spaghetti.      

This marinara sauce is delicious served just straight up with pasta, but it is also very versatile and as easy (and much better tasting) as opening a jar of pre-made sauce. In a cold saucepan add 1/4 cup of olive oil, 2 minced cloves of garlic and 1/2 teaspoon of red pepper flakes.  Turn on the heat to medium and bringing the garlic and hot pepper flakes up to temperature at the same time as the olive oil.  This technique will infuse the oil with all of the flavor of the garlic and hot peppers slowly so that they dont burn.  Next add 1 can of whole San Marzano tomatoes, about 2 tablespoons of tomato paste, 1 tablespoon of sugar and 1 teaspoon of salt.  Bring to a boil, reduce to a simmer and cook for about 30-40 minutes.  Turn off the heat and mash the, now soft, whole tomatoes with a potato masher until you achieved the desired consistency.  Set aside.

In a large saute pan, cook the Italian sausage in 1/4 water over medium heat for about 10 minutes or until water evaporates and sausage is cooked.  Add a few drizzles of olive oil and let the sausage brown on all sides for about 10-15 minutes.  Just before the sausage is completely browned, add 1/2 sliced sweet onion and 1 small sliced sweet red pepper to the pan and sautee until vegetables just begin to brown.  Add several ladles full of the marinara sauce to the pan with the sausage, onions and peppers and be sure to scrape the bottom of the pan to remove the tasty brown bits.  Cook for 5 minutes or just until it all comes together. 

Cook the pasta per the instructions on the box, combine with the remaining marinara sauce and top with the sausage, onion and pepper mixture.  Finish with shavings of parmesan cheese and enjoy!