Perfect Idiot-Proof Pasta Dish

Ingredients:
1 lb. ziti or penne
1/2 lb. hot italian sausage
1 cup zucchini, or summer squash, or both
1 cup grape tomatoes
1/2 cup chopped onion
1/2 cup chopped red pepper (fresh or roasted)
basil (about a handful, chopped)
2 cloves of garlic
1/2 a lemon (juice and zest)
1/4 cup red wine
olive oil
red pepper flake
ground thyme
salt and pepper

1.Remove the casing from the sausage and cook in a frying pan till browned, 6-8 minutes.
2.Reserve the sausage; pour wine into pan and use a wooden spoon to scrape up all the little charred bits of sausage.
3.Add a little olive oil to the pan on medium heat and then put the combination of garlic, onion, pepper and zucchini. Add salt and pepper and red pepper flake. Stir frequently for two minutes to coat all the vegetables, add grape tomatoes.
4.Meanwhile, cook your pasta according to directions on box. Salt the boiling water RIGHT before you add the pasta ALWAYS.
4.When zucchini is softened, add a dash of ground thyme to the vegetables plus the sausage that was reserved.
5.When pasta is done, add one ladle full of pasta water to the sausage and veggies before draining. When pasta is drained add the pasta to the frying pan. Toss the pasta with the meat and veggies to coat. Add the zest of half a lemon and its juice, and chopped basil. Toss pasta and plate. Grate fresh parmigiano-reggiano on top of plates.

Great thing about this recipe is its versatility. In the summer this is perfect with zucchini or summer squash, or even some shrimp thrown in. In the winter you could substitute with some broccoli rabe, plain broccoli or cauliflour. Maybe even try some pumpkin and substitute with some nutmeg. Instead of italian sausage you can go with chorizo for some extra spice or even keep it simple with some bacon or pancetta (uncured Italian bacon). Anyways I will be making this again in the near future and will try to either post a video or pics of the recipe.