Rigatoni with French Lentils & Sausage

These are the same French lentils that I love to serve with a classic roast chicken or simple baked salmon coated with a maple-Dijon glaze.  The lentils are cooked to tender and then are tossed together with a healthy sauté of red onions, garlic, carrots and celery; all flavored with fresh parsley, Dijon mustard and a touch of red wine vinegar for tang.  I tossed the French lentils with al dente rigatoni pasta and some cooked chicken sausage.  To carry through with the overall French theme of the dish, everything was finished off with some creamy, crumbled chèvre goat cheese. Très délicieux.

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Rigatoni with French Lentils & Sausage

  • Prep time:
  • Cook time:
  • Total time:
  • Yield: 4-6
  • Difficulty: easy
  • Recipe type: Pasta

Ingredients:

  • 1/2 lb. chicken sausage, in casings
  • olive oil
  • 1 1/2 cups sprouted lentils
  • 2 carrots, small dice
  • 1 celery stalk, small dice
  • small red onion, small dice
  • 2 garlic cloves, minced
  • salt and pepper
  • Splash of dry white wine
  • 1/2 cup chicken stock
  • 2 Tablespoons fresh parsley, chopped
  • 1 Tablespoon Dijon mustard
  • 3 Tablespoons red wine vinegar
  • 12 oz. rigatoni pasta, cooked according to package instructions to al dente, drained
  • crumbled goat cheese, for serving

Directions:

  1. Drizzle a touch of olive oil on a small baking sheet; place the sausages on the oiled baking sheet. Cook in a preheated 375 degree oven for 15 minutes, or until plumped up and cooked through. Allow the sausages to cook before cutting into half-moon shape.
  2. Bring a medium saucepan of water to a boil. Add in the lentils and cook for 15 minutes, or until they are tender. Drain the lentils.
  3. In the same saucepan, heat 1 1/2 tablespoons of olive oil over medium heat. Add in all of the chopped veggies and season with 1 teaspoon of salt and a big grinding of black pepper. Saute over medium heat for 10 minutes; add in the white wine and cook another 2 minutes. Next, add in the chicken stock and parsley. Continue to cook the veggies over medium-low heat until they are very tender, about 5 more minutes. Stir in the mustard, vinegar, and cooked lentils. Remove from the heat.
  4. Toss the cooked pasta together with the cooked veggies and lentils, as well as the diced sausage. Serve warm with crumbled goat cheese on top and more chopped parsley if you wish.

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