On the Table: Smoked Sausage and Mushroom Pasta

Sausage and mushrooms are delicious together on pizza, so why not on pasta?  Well, they ARE delicious together on pasta!  I made this really fast, easy dish for dinner the other night, and it was awesome.  I used smoked sausage, which was particularly fantastic, and some balsamic vinegar, which really tied everything together.  To prepare:

Put a large pot of salted water on to boil.  Prepare half a pound of pasta according to package directions.  I used farfalle, which worked really well.  In the meantime, prepare the sauce. 

Clean and thinly slice half a pound of mushrooms.  Remove the casing from half a pound of smoked sausage and cut the sausage into half inch chunks.

Thinly coat the bottom of a large skillet with canola oil and put it over medium heat.  When the oil gets hot, add the mushrooms to the pot and cook until the mushrooms just start to soften.  Add to the pot the sausage, half a cup of chicken stock, 1/4 of a cup of balsamic vinegar, and a dash of salt.  Cook, stirring often, until the mushrooms are tender, the sausage is heated through, and most of the liquid has evaporated.  When the pasta is finished cooking, add it into the skillet, along with a bit of the pasta water.  Stir thoroughly to combine and adjust seasoning.

Serve topped with parmesan cheese.

Enjoy!