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Life needs occasional upheaval to keep things exciting and moving forward, to maintain blood flow, and to avoid stagnation in various regions of the body.
I see life as a glass of unpasteurized fruit juice: as time goes on, the pulp—which holds all the tasty fruit—will sink to the bottom unless you give it a good shake, and the liquid on top will taste bland and watered down, never realizing its full flavor potential. If the flavor is only “OK” or “so-so,” no one will be impressed.
Plus, it’s easy to lose interest in anything when it’s just “OK” or “so-so,” isn’t it?
But if you shake that lovely jug of unfiltered juice often, the sticky sediments will dissolve into the lovely liquid, giving each iced drink a revitalizing new flavor.
I feel that our lives are like a “juice jug” that, unless shaken every so often, would never be able to contain all the delicious flavors that life may bring. We’ll just keep sipping the slender liquid on top till we start to realize that everything tastes rather dull, but we won’t know why.
The items required:
• Olive oil • 4 links of spicy Italian sausage, casings removed • 1 large onion, quartered and thinly sliced • 1 ½ teaspoons of salt • 1 teaspoon of Italian seasoning • ½ teaspoon of cracked black pepper • 4 cloves of garlic, pressed through a garlic press • ½ cup of white wine (I used Chardonnay) • 1 can of diced tomatoes with juice • 2 tablespoons of chopped flat-leaf parsley • ¼ cup of fresh basil leaves, julienned and divided • 8 oz of uncooked pappardelle noodles
Setting Up:
In a large braising pot or heavy-bottomed pan, heat 2 tablespoons of olive oil over medium-high heat.
After crushing the spicy Italian sausage into tiny pieces, brown it in a pan over medium-high heat for a few minutes on each side. You want the sausage to stay fairly chunky. Once browned, transfer to a small bowl and put aside to cool somewhat.
– AAdd the cut onion and sausage fat and mix well. About 5 minutes into cooking, stirring periodically, the onion should start to color and caramelize. To avoid scorching, drizzle in a little more olive oil if necessary. -Season with salt, Italian seasoning, and crushed black pepper, then stir in the onion when it starts to turn golden. After the garlic begins to release its aroma, add the sliced bell peppers and sautĂ© for about 2 minutes with the onion, or until the peppers are softened and slightly browned. Let the white wine simmer for a few minutes, or until it’s almost completely evaporated. -After that, add the diced tomatoes and their liquid to the skillet with the browned spicy Italian sausage. Mix the ingredients together gently. After 3–4 minutes of gentle simmering to blend the flavors, remove from the heat.
For the finishing touch, stir in half of the julienned basil and chopped parsley. Whisk in 2-3 tablespoons of olive oil for a smooth and rich flavor. Set aside to warm while you prepare the noodles.
– ATo cook the pappardelle noodles, just follow the package guidelines. Before adding them to the sauce, make sure they are drained. Toss the noodles with the sauce using tongs, being careful not to overmix. You can tell whether the sauce needs extra pepper or salt by tasting it.
– ABefore serving, be sure to evenly distribute the “Drunken” noodles across all of the dishes. Finish with a little more olive oil, shaved Parmesan, and the rest of the julienned basil, if you like.
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