I always gravitate towards the unique non traditional pasta shapes, when I see a shelf full of them I always have to grab a bag or two. My pantry is stocked with different shapes just waiting to be cooked up, so every now and then I will showcase one here on my blog.
Like these cute little lasagnetti which I recently found, they look like mini one inch square lasagne sheets. As far as what kind of sauce to serve with it, my first idea was to toss them into marinara and then dot the whole thing with fresh ricotta and a little romano, but I wanted something different this time and since fresh asparagus has been popping up all over in my area I used that as my inspiration to make this dish.
The combination of roasted zucchini coins, asparagus, medium spicy Italian sausage and sauteed grape tomatoes turned out to be the perfect flavor combination to grace my lasagnetti. Of course, any sturdy pasta shape would do, but if you’re interested my fellow Chicagoans, I got this pasta at Caputo’s.
If you’re looking for something a little different for your next dinner party I would suggest this dish, not only does it taste great it looks really nice spread out on a platter!
It’s fun to get out of your comfort zone every now and then!
- 3 small yellow squash cut in ¼ inch slice
- 3 small zucchini cut in ¼ inch slice
- 1 lb. fresh asparagus cut diagonally
- 12 or more grape tomatoes cut in half
- 1 large shallot finely chopped
- 1 lb. Italian sausage, casings removed
- ½ cup each of white wine, chicken broth and pasta water
- ¼ cup olive oil
- 2 garlic cloves, minced
- 1 lb. of cooked lasagnetti or any sturdy pasta, reserve ½ cup pasta water
- 1 cup of ricotta
- fresh basil and grated romano for garnish
- Roast zucchini coins and asparagus on a baking sheet drizzled in olive oil at 425 until golden brown.
- Saute the tomatoes in olive oil in a small skillet.
- Brown sausage in a skillet with the chopped shallot and garlic cloves, my sausage is very lean so I add a little olive oil when browning. When sausage is cooked through add in the wine, broth, ¼ cup olive oil and pasta water, this will be the base for your sauce.
- Toss everything into a large bowl coating the cooked pasta with the sauce, tossing with grated cheese, fresh snipped basil and salt and pepper to taste.
- Place on a platter and dot with fresh ricotta and a drizzle more of olive oil if needed.
I’m Marie, a wife, mother, mother-in-law, and gramma of two beautiful girls. My passion is food, clear and simple but especially Italian food, hence the name of my blog, Proud Italian Cook. I want you to feel right at home here so grab a cup of coffee, I’ll get the pastries, take a look around and enjoy your visit! {
