Smoky & Sweet: A Sauce for September

Sausage, Fennel Seed and Red Pepper Ragu

It is ragu weather at last. I can’t pretend not to be thrilled that the incessant heat is over, even if I know so many in England have barely even seen the sun this summer. Here it has been hellish, if slightly less so than usual, because we got through August without the horrendous (and onomatopoeic) ‘affa’; a heavy, oppressive, airless, cloudy heat that descends around peak summer.

Now it really feels like Autumn, autumn smoky and sweet like this ragu. The scent of the first wood fires and the sweetness of the last figs, stone fruit and the first apples. A different Autumn to the one I grew up with, but still a shift. There are no russet hues, crisp mornings and crisper apples; instead there are bright coral Fichi D’India, proud and pert on their paddle-like leaves, the last figs, heavy grape clusters on tawny vines and a cool wind that makes me reach for long sleeves and the sheet over my bare feet at night for the first time in three long months. Hugging each other is once again a pleasure rather than a penance. I have started to make tea in the mornings again, and even bake bread and eat biscuits. It is bliss, and I bought a sausage to celebrate.

Now I have to say I think I prefer a sausage ragu to a standard minced meat one, because what makes normal mincemeat much more acceptable to me here in Italy is that it is usually a mix of pork and beef, and the pork I think gives more fat and more flavour. So a sausage ragu cuts out the beef completely and is always rich and lip-smackingly satisfying. Here it is paired with sweet, late summer peppers and braised slowly to produce a sauce with is shining, smoky, sweet and salty (it tastes like sweet smoked paprika). Perfect for September, and perfect for small children (the Tiny Saint devoured it, with some very loud smacking of his very small chops).  

Serves 4

400g sausage meat ( I had half a leftover large roasted sausage and broke it in at the end)

1 red onion, finely diced

1 clove of garlic, sliced

3 tbsp olive oil

2 red peppers, deseeded and chopped into smalligh strips

1 glass of white wine

400g passata or tinned tomatoes

salt and pepper

1 tsp fennel seeds

a pinch of chilli flakes (optional)

fresh basil to serve

Saute the onion, peppers and garlic in the olive oil until soft and the onions are just turning golden. Add in your sausage meat and cook, stirring all the time. Add in the wine and allow to reduce a little then add the passata and all of the remaining ingredients and allow to bubble away with the lid half on for 20-30 minutes, stirring occasionally. Taste and check for seasoning, adding salt and pepper as you wish. It may need to reduce more.

Once happy with your sauce cook your preferred pasta (100g a portion) until al dente (in a large pot of well salted water) and then stir through the sauce, adding extra fresh basil and grated cheese if desired.