Turkey or Chicken Sausage with Rigatoni in Roasted Garlic and Caramelized Onion Sauce

Ingredients

1 pound ground turkey (dark and white meat) or chicken
3 cloves garlic, chopped plus 1 whole bulb, for roasting
A couple of stems rosemary, leaves finely chopped, 2 to 3 tablespoons
1 1/2 teaspoons red pepper flakes, half a palmful
1 1/2 teaspoons paprika
1 1/2 teaspoons fennel seed
1 1/2 teaspoons poultry seasoning
Salt and pepper
EVOO – Extra Virgin Olive Oil, for drizzling plus about 2 tablespoons
4 tablespoons butter

2 large onions, thinly sliced
1 bay leaf
1/2 cup dry white wine
1 to 1 1/2 cups chicken stock
1/2 cup heavy cream
1 pound rigatoni
Grated Parmigiano-Reggiano

Yields: 4-6

Preparation

Combine turkey or chicken with chopped garlic, rosemary, red pepper flakes, paprika, fennel, poultry seasoning, salt and pepper. Chill several hours or overnight for flavors to combine.

To roast garlic, preheat oven to 400°F. Cut the bulb of garlic across the top end to expose all of the cloves then dress with a drizzle of EVOO, salt and pepper. Wrap bulb in foil and roast until tender and caramel in color, 40 minutes.

Meanwhile, melt butter in a skillet over medium heat. Add onions and bay leaf, and season with salt and pepper. Stir occasionally for 30 minutes until onions are caramel in color, and very soft and sweet. Deglaze the pan with white wine and discard bay leaf.

In a food processor, squeeze out the roasted garlic cloves from the skins and add the onions and enough stock to smoothly purée sauce. Add purée to a saucepot and combine with cream. Reduce to thicken while pasta cooks.

Bring a large pot of water to a boil, salt water and cook rigatoni to al dente.

While water comes to a boil, heat a large skillet over medium-high heat with 2 remaining tablespoons EVOO, a couple of turns of the pan. Add homemade turkey sausage, crumbling it as it cooks.

Combine pasta with sausage and creamy sauce and top with Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese.