Little Ears Pasta

🥘 Ingredients

• baby broccoli (trimmed and cut into 1-inch pieces)
  8 oz
• chili flakes
  1 tsp
• olive oil
  1 tbsp
• orecchiette pasta
  8 oz
• parmesan cheese
  ½ cup
• pesto
  2 tbsp
• sweet italian pork sausage (casings removed)
  8 oz

🍳 Cookware

• large pot
• large pan

1. 

   1

   Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil.
2. 

   2

   Add orecchiette pasta to the boiling water. Cook, stirring occasionally, until al dente ⏱️ 10 minutes . Carefully scoop out and reserve ¼ cup pasta cooking water, then drain.

   orecchiette pasta: 8 oz
3. 

   3

   Heat a drizzle of olive oil in a large pan over medium heat. Add baby broccoli and 2 tsp water. Cover and steam ⏱️ 3 minutes . Uncover and increase heat to medium-high. Cook, tossing occasionally, until browned and tender ⏱️ 5 minutes . Season with salt and pepper. Remove from pan and set aside.

   olive oil: 1 tbsp, baby broccoli: 8 oz (trimmed and cut into 1-inch pieces)
4. 

   4

   Heat another drizzle of olive oil in the same pan over medium-high heat. Add sweet italian pork sausage , breaking up meat into pieces. Cook until crisp at edges and no longer pink ⏱️ 4 minutes . Add chili flakes and cook ⏱️ 30 seconds .

   sweet italian pork sausage: 8 oz (casings removed), chili flakes: 1 tsp
5. 

   5

   Add the cooked orecchiette pasta, baby broccoli, pesto , reserved pasta cooking water, and half the parmesan cheese to the pan. Toss until everything is well-coated and a thick sauce has formed ⏱️ 1 minutes . Season with salt and pepper.

   pesto: 2 tbsp, parmesan cheese: ½ cup
6. 

   6

   Divide the orecchiette mixture between plates. Sprinkle with the remaining parmesan cheese and serve.