Recipes Dinner Meat Dishes Sausage Dishes Spicy Sausage Pasta with Tomatoes and Squash 4.9 (7) 6 Reviews Added just minutes before serving, thinly sliced squash melts into the pasta without losing its shape and texture. Use a mandoline to achieve wafer-thin slices By Liz Mervosh Liz Mervosh Elizabeth Mervosh is a recipe tester and developer for Dotdash Meredith Food Studios in Birmingham, Alabama. She creates and fine-tunes recipes for brands including Southern Living, Real Simple, Food & Wine, People, and EatingWell. Food & Wine's Editorial Guidelines Updated on August 2, 2023 Tested by Food & Wine Test Kitchen Tested by Food & Wine Test Kitchen Recipes published by Food & Wine are rigorously tested by the culinary professionals at the Dotdash Meredith Food Studios in order to empower home cooks to enjoy being in the kitchen and preparing meals they will love. Our expert culinary team tests and retests each recipe using equipment and ingredients found in home kitchens to ensure that every recipe is delicious and works for cooks at home every single time. Meet the Food & Wine Test Kitchen Save Rate PRINT Share Close Photo: Photo by David Malosh / Prop Styling by Amy Wilson / Food Styling by Maggie Ruggiero Total Time: 30 mins Yield: 6 Cook Mode (Keep screen awake) Ingredients 1 (12-ounce) package orecchiette or small shells pasta 2 tablespoons olive oil, divided 12 ounces fresh merguez or spicy Italian sausage, casings removed 3 tablespoons spicy harissa (such as Mina), plus more to taste 1/3 cup dry white wine 1 pint multicolored cherry tomatoes, halved (about 2 cups) 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt, plus more to taste 1 cup very thinly sliced zucchini and/or yellow crookneck squash 1/4 cup thinly sliced fresh mint, plus more for garnish 4 ounces feta cheese, crumbled (about 1 cup) Directions Cook pasta in a large pot of generously salted water until very al dente (about 2 minutes less than package directions). Drain pasta, reserving 3/4 cup cooking liquid. Set pasta and cooking liquid aside. Heat 1 tablespoon oil in a large, deep skillet over medium-high until shimmering. Add sausage in 1-inch clumps, and cook, undisturbed, until browned on bottom, about 3 minutes. Stir and cook, breaking up sausage with a wooden spoon, until almost cooked through, about 2 minutes. Drain and discard drippings, reserving cooked sausage and 1 tablespoon drippings in skillet. Add harissa to skillet; cook over medium-high, stirring constantly, 30 seconds. Add wine, stirring and scraping up any browned bits from bottom of skillet. Cook, stirring occasionally, until slightly reduced, about 2 minutes. Stir in tomatoes, salt, cooked pasta, and 1/2 cup reserved cooking liquid. Cook, stirring constantly, until a creamy sauce forms and coats pasta, about 3 minutes, gradually stirring in remaining 1/4 cup cooking liquid as needed to reach desired consistency. Remove from heat. Scatter sliced squash and mint over pasta. Drizzle with remaining 1 tablespoon oil, and toss to combine. Let stand until squash is slightly wilted, about 2 minutes. Season with harissa and salt to taste. Divide pasta among bowls, and top evenly with feta; garnish with sliced mint. Suggested Pairing Spicy Southern Italian red. Originally appeared: September 2020 Rate It Print