five ingredients or less: pasta with sausage and broccoli rabe

Easiest pasta ever? Most amazing pasta recipes are paragons of simplicity, so this one is really not that unique. It is a classic combination, however, with the sweet and salty sausage balancing out the mild bitterness of the broccoli rabe. A perfect, completely rounded meal with only five ingredients (fat, salt, and pepper don't count). I even made this one with whole wheat pasta, so you could possibly consider it healthy, if you didn't think too hard about all the sausage fat...recipe after the jump:

PASTA WITH SAUSAGE AND BROCCOLI RABE
1 lb short pasta, like fusilli, penne, or orecchiette
2 tbsp olive oil
1/2 lb Italian sweet sausage, out of casing
1 lb broccoli rabe, chopped into 1-inch pieces
2 cloves garlic, minced
1/4 cup parmiggiano reggiano
salt and pepper, to taste

Cook pasta according to package directions. While pasta is cooking, heat 1 tbsp olive oil in a large saute pan. Crumble sausage into pan and brown lightly, the sausage does not need to be completely cooked at this stage as it will be returned to the pan later. With a slotted spoon, remove the sausage and set aside. Add the second tbsp of olive oil, the broccoli rabe, and the minced garlic and saute until tender, about 5 minutes. Add the sausage back to the pan and saute another couple of minutes until cooked through. Drain the pasta and add to the saute pan, season with salt and pepper, and toss to incorporate. Serve topped with grated parmiggiano reggiano.