Stephanie Brogan was raised in an Italian-American family and is no stranger in the kitchen. Growing up there was lots of time spent slinging sausage and peppers at the local Italian festival, making pizzelle for the holidays and learning how to make braciole for the family Sunday dinner.

Post-college is when her interest in food shifted from mainly eating to cooking. While working through family recipes and some old Italian cookbooks her love of feeding friends and family grew.

After a career in marketing with events in NYC and lots of travel, the love of food and Italian culture pushed her to take a leap and try something new, tackling the food industry with the mission to connect with people through the passion for food.

Her passion brought her to opening up Limone Market, an online craft merchant that aims to go beyond the traditional online "supermarket" or gourmet shop. Inspired by the Italian lakeside town, Limone sul Garda, where residents are known to live to 100 and a love for Italian design. Launched in January of 2021, every item featured has been thoughtfully sourced and selected to make Italian cooking more approachable for master chefs and novices alike. Limone Market’s mission is to provide the discerning foodie a selection of high quality, artisanal Italian products at varying price points. They work with producers and foodmakers that are mostly organic and have a sense of sustainability, offer quick shipping, a focus on customer service, methods for using the ingredients in the shop as well as traditional Italian recipes. From the gourmet to the everyday home cook, the goal is to make cooking approachable, fun and intuitive and of course to impart a bit of Italy in every home.
Stephanie generously created a delicious pasta dish with sausage, peppers, and fennel. An approachable and familiar recipe with a little twist of the toasted breadcrumbs with wild fennel. Sausage and peppers are Italian-American classics, which result in a comforting and satisfying dish, especially for a fall night where a chill starts to creep in the air.

Check out Limone Market online or on Instagram and make sure to tag them if you try their recipe!

CASARECCE WITH SAUSAGE, PEPPERS AND FENNEL

INGREDIENTS

▢ Box of Casarecce Pasta
▢ 2 tbsp Forte Extra Virgin Olive Oil
▢ 1 Jar Marinara Pasta Sauce with Oregano Flowers
▢ 3 Bell Peppers (2 red, 1 green) but use whatever you have
▢ 1 medium yellow onion
▢ 1 bulb of fennel
▢ 1 lb sweet italian sausage (or spicy if you prefer)
▢ 3 cloves garlic
▢ 1 cup of panko breadcrumbs
▢ 1 tsp of Wild Foraged Fennel Pollen
▢ Parmigiano-Reggiano
▢ Salt & pepper to taste

DIRECTIONS

1. Bring a large pot of water to boil. Salt just before adding pasta. Cook pasta according to package.
2. Preheat oven to 400.
3. Slice Peppers, onions and fennel to desired shape, I keep them pretty big because I like the chunks in the sauce and because it prevents the veggies from burning in the oven.
4. Mix 2 tablespoons of oil and peppers, onion and fennel, add salt & pepper to taste. Roast in the oven at 400 for 30 min. We are looking for them to become nice & caramelized.
5. Meanwhile, heat a large skillet on medium to medium high. Remove sausage from casings and brown in pan. I like to get small crumbles and get them nice & crispy, about 8 minutes. Once sausage is cooked, add garlic and cook until fragrant (about 30s to 1 minute).
6. Add the jar of sauce and let it come to a simmer. Add in the peppers, fennel and onion to the sauce.
   
7. While the sauce is simmering, grab a separate small non-stick pan. Heat to medium and coat the bottom with olive oil, generously.
8. Add breadcrumbs and wild fennel pollen and pinch of sea salt and toast.
9. Once pasta is done add a ladle of water to the sauce.

10. Scoop everything in a bowl. Top with breadcrumbs, some fennel fronds and a sprinkle of Parmigiano-Reggiano!