Darren's Grandmom's Pasta

Some of the best family recipes are the simplest ones. This is Grandmom’s weeknight move: crumbled Italian sausage simmered in jarred pasta sauce with a secret splash of heavy cream stirred in at the end.

That little bit of cream transforms a regular jar of sauce into something that clings to rigatoni like it’s been slow-cooking all Sunday. A blizzard of freshly grated Parmesan on top seals the deal.

Six ingredients. Forty minutes. The kind of dinner that makes you call your grandmother and say thank you.

Kitchen Tips

• Use hot or sweet Italian sausage depending on your crowd. Hot sausage gives the sauce a peppery kick.
• Cook the sausage low and slow with a splash of water. It stays tender instead of getting dry and crumbly.
• Drain the fat well before adding the sauce, or the finished dish will be greasy.
• Rigatoni is the right call here. Those ridges and tubes catch the meaty sauce in every bite.