Creamy Italian Pork Sausage & Broccoli Farfalle

Add the farfalle to the saucepan of boiling water and cook until almost tender, 7 minutes. Add the broccoli and cook until the broccoli is just tender and the pasta is ‘al dente’, 3-4 minutes. Drain, reserving 1/2 cup pasta water. Return the farfalle and broccoli to the saucepan. TIP: 'Al dente' means the pasta is cooked through but still has a bit of firmness in the middle.

While the pasta is cooking, heat a drizzle of olive oil in a large frying pan over a medium-high heat. When the oil is hot, squeeze the meat out of the classic pork sausages casing in small chunks, directly into the pan. You should get around 10 small meatballs per person. Cook, tossing, until browned all over, 3-4 minutes. TIP: This is a cheat's way of making meatballs!

Add the onion to the frying pan and cook, stirring, until soft, 2-3 minutes. Add the garlic, tomato paste, fennel seeds (1/2 sachet for 2 people / 1 sachet for 4 people), if using, and pinch of chilli flakes (if using) and cook, stirring, until fragrant, 1-2 minutes.

Reduce the heat to low and add the light cooking cream and the salt. Stir until well combined. Add the baby spinach leaves and cooked farfalle and broccoli and stir until the pasta is well coated and the baby spinach has wilted. Loosen the sauce with a splash of reserved pasta water if needed. Season to taste with salt and pepper.