Ernesto's Random-Cut Pasta with Sausage Sauce / Taccozze con Salsiccia

Ingredients

• PASTA
• 2 1/2 cups finely ground durum semolina flour, plus additional if needed
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 cup warm filtered water
• 1 teaspoon Filippo Berio extra-virgin olive oil
• Place the four and salt in the bowl of a food processor fitted with the steel blade and whirl the mixture to blend. With the motor running, slowly pour the water through the feed tube. Add the olive oil and continue processing until a ball of dough is formed that is moist and holds together. If the dough seems too dry, add a few drops of water and pulse.
• 30 Gather up the dough and knead it for a few minutes on a wooden surface, adding a little flour only if the dough is sticking to your hands. Cover the dough with a bowl and let it rest forminutes.
• Divide the dough into quarters and work with one piece of dough at a time; keep the remaining pieces covered.
• Roll the dough out into a rough circle or rectangle shape approximately 1/8-inch thick.With a sharp knife, cut across the dough so that you make strips about1/2-inches wide.Then cut the strips into either squares, diamonds, or triangles.Put the finished shapes onto a floured towel, sprinkling them with a bit of flour to keep them from clumping together.Repeat the process until all the dough is used.Let the shapes dry for aboutminutes before cooking.
• 4 Cook the shapes in salted water for aboutminutes, just until al dente.
• SAUCE
• 1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
• 1/2 pound sweet Italian sausage flavored with fennel, removed from the casing and broken up
• 1 small red onion, chopped
• 1 Little Devil hot red pepper, chopped, or more or less to taste
• 1/2 cup dry white wine
• 1 cup prepared tomato sauce
• Salt to taste
• Pecorino cheese, grated, for sprinkling
• Heat the olive oil in a large sauté pan and add the sausage.Cook until the sausage is browned.Add the onion and cook for another minute or two.Add the hot pepper and cook for another minute.Add the wine and cook the sauce until most of the wine evaporates.Add the tomato sauce.Taste and add salt if necessary.Keep the sauce warm while the pasta cooks.
• Drain the pasta and add it to the pan with the sauce along with about 1/4 cup of the cooking water. Mix well to coat the pasta and serve immediately with the grated cheese for sprinkling over the top.
• 2002 Ernesto used aMasserie Flocco, Chardonnay "Podere del Canneto" in this recipe.