This 5-Star Ina Garten Recipe Is My Favorite

Whether you're feeding a crowd or your family, this dish is a people pleaser.

Simply Recipes / Getty Images / Lauren Bair 

Two minutes into a Le Creuset factory mini-documentary on YouTube, I was questioning everything about my life. Why do I want enameled cast-iron cookware, and why do I feel that I need it in every single color... even though I can't afford it, and I hardly ever cook with it?

But these are not the right questions here; instead, I should ask myself: Why don't I have this entire line in creamy Brioche?

Right after college, I bought a non-Le Creuset Dutch oven—that dutifully overwhelmed my one-inch-square New York City apartment stove—purely because I associated the hefty cookware with cozy, crowd-pleasing meals. It all seemed so romantic: Returning home from work with a few groceries (including a baguette, obviously) and pouring myself a glass of wine, tossing a bunch of aromatics, broths, butters, and maybe a whole chicken into the pot, and twirling around my tiny kitchen to Miles Davis until everything fell off the bone.

I pictured myself kind of like Julie Powell in Julie & Julia, with Nigella Lawson's no-nonsense sass, and a little Bridget Jones for relatability. I was no cook, but I was sure that my Dutch oven would solve that pesky problem. I didn't realize what I actually needed was this G.O.A.T. five-star pasta recipe from Ina Garten: Rigatoni with Sausage and Fennel.

Simply Recipes / Lauren Bair

Why I Love Ina's Rigatoni With Sausage and Fennel

Possibly America's greatest influencer for Le Creuset, Ina makes all of us home cooks look like we know what we're doing with her hearty Rigatoni with Sausage and Fennel. It's easy to put together in any type of pot, and totally worth the effort with a few handy shortcuts.

Luscious and rich with a creamy sauce, mildly fennel-y thanks to sweet Italian sausage, loaded with Parmesan, and topped with fresh parsley, it's a comforting favorite of mine to make for a crowd or meal prep for the week. And, according to hundreds of stellar reviews, even picky kids request it on repeat.

Simply Recipes / Lauren Bair

How To Make This Five-Star Pasta

Simply heat the olive oil in the pot, stir in the chopped onions and fennel, and cook until tender. Then, add the sausage, cooking until browned, followed by the minced garlic, crushed fennel seeds, crushed red pepper, salt, and pepper. Finally, all the liquids are added: wine, heavy cream, and half-and-half, along with tomato paste. Turn the heat to low, and simmer for 20 minutes.

While the sauce is thickening, boil the pasta in a big pot of salted water. Just cook the pasta a minute or two shorter than the time on the package, since it will continue heating with the sauce. Drain the noodles, add them to the sauce, and heat everything on low for five minutes to marry the ingredients. Off the heat, toss in the Parmesan and parsley, and dinner is ready to go.

Simply Recipes / Lauren Bair

My Quick Tips

A mortar and pestle sounds very Ina-in-the-Hamptons, but you can use a zip-top bag to crush the fennel seeds with a rolling pin, or you can blitz them in a spice grinder. You can also swap fennel seeds for pre-ground fennel; it's more potent, so just use a little less.

Don't feel like fiddling with fresh fennel? Sub one cup of chopped yellow or white onion. And instead of wrangling sausage casings, just look for pre-packaged ground Italian sausage, which can go straight into the pot.

Lastly, if you don't have white wine on hand, come over to my house! (I'm mostly kidding.) I'm still waiting for Le Creuset to release an enameled vessel that holds a bag of wine, so I can live my classiest boxed wine life while my Dutch oven saves yet another weeknight dinner from a budget-busting trip to the drive-thru.

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Simply Recipes / Lauren Bair

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