Fresh Linguine with Spicy Sausage

No matter how good the food is or how plentiful the wine is there is no substitute for great company.  With all my best friends in town and after an eventful weekend of food, drink and exploring the city we decided to hit up two iconic food markets and make dinner at home for their last night.  We started at Murray's Cheese Shop on Bleecker Street where we picked up some fresh linguine.  We easily could have done all our shopping there but we also wanted to go check out Eataly, which I have previously avoided due to the crowds, but figured on a Monday afternoon we should be all right.  Eataly is notoriously expensive and there is plenty of truth to that, but we were able to walk out there without spending too much.  However, if were to do a complete grocery shop there or sit in for a meal you could certainly make a dent in the wallet.  We picked up some incredible olives with a citrus seasoning as well as a loaf of rustic olive bread, which was expensive, but incredibly delicious.  From the butcher shop, we picked up some spicy sausage.  The sausage was incredibly flavorful with just the right amount of kick and no more expensive than what you'd find in Whole Foods.  For those of you who don't live in New York City, grocery shopping at Whole Foods is one of the more reasonable places to shop, unbelievable I know, but that's my justification for using Whole Foods prices as a comparison.  

Ingredients:

4-6 Spicy Italian sausage links
1lb Fresh pasta
1 48oz can of crushed tomatoes
1 red bell pepper, chopped
1 onion, chopped
Olive oil

Method:

Start by sauteing the sausages in a pan with a splash of olive oil.  Once brown on all sides, slice into medallions.  Meanwhile, saute chopped onions in olive oil until they start to brown, add the red bell pepper, about 15 minutes.  Add tomato sauce and sausage,  simmer on low until ready to serve.  In a large pot boil water for fresh pasta.  Fresh pasta takes 1/2 the time for normal pasta to cook. Taste and drain when you reach desired texture.

Serve with fresh bread and an arugula salad with a lemon dressing and grated Parmesan.