hearty fall pasta dishes Archives

I have always struggled with transitions. The bridge between summer and fall is a tough one for me. I don’t put on socks until November.

Markets here in Ottawa are still selling local sweet corn and I’ll be buying for as long as they’re selling. I’m in no hurry to say goodbye to summer.

The fall produce is starting to arrive but I’m not quite ready to be rushed into pumpkins and squash. I’ll start slow with a verdant head of fresh broccoli.

This Corn, Broccoli and Spicy Italian Sausage and Shells is the perfect dish to make for dinner this week. It bridges that gap between summer and fall perfectly.

Featuring sweet local corn, it satisfies our desire to stretch the summer season for as long as possible. Hearty spicy Italian sausage (I used plant based) and earthy broccoli are firmly rooted in the comfort food zone of fall.

I adapted this recipe from Chris Morocco’s Corn and Sausage Pasta from the September 2022 issue of Bon Appetit. I added a large head of broccoli, cooked it for 2 minutes in boiling water and then chopped it up into rubble sized pieces so that each bite has lots of broccoli bits. There is never enough broccoli for me.

The second change I made to Chris’ recipe was too add some Crunchy Garlic Breadcrumbs as a garnish. I love to play with textures, and these light, fluffy and crunchy crumbs make the perfect garnish. Totally optional, but worth the extra few minutes of time.

The pasta cooking water, Parmesan cheese and a small knob of butter make for a creamy and satisfying sauce.

Click here to print recipe for Corn, Broccoli, and Spicy Sausage Pasta.

Osso buco, literally translated in Italian means “bone with a hole”. The hole refers to the marrow hole at the center of the cross-cut veal shank. Traditionally, the cross-cut veal shanks are slowly braised in stock, wine, tomatoes and vegetables and then served with some polenta or perhaps risotto. I decided to take the braised meat off the bone, shred it up and mix it back with the flavourful braising liquid and vegetables and serve it over pasta. Any pasta that has little nooks and crannies to trap the delicious bits of this chunky sauce would be fine. Warm, hearty, rich, tangy and just a little bit spicy, this dish really is a celebration of fall.

I especially love this dish because once the chopping and browning are done, the whole thing is covered and popped into the oven for 2 hours, leaving you time to do something else. (A little late to the game, but so obsessed. Those eyes!!! Anyone else watching?)

I blogged about this recipe before, in 2011, but it’s still a favourite of mine. I make a big pot of it every fall and have enough sauce leftover to freeze for those dark winter days when you just don’t feel like cooking.

Because there’s nothing I like better than a good makeover, here’s the image I shot in 2011. Same delicious recipe, but new and improved photography skills!