Recipe: Sausage-stuffed squid braised with tomatoes and potatoes

Total time: About 1 hour, 10 minutes

Servings: 4 to 6

3/4 pound fingerling or other small potatoes

1/3 pound Italian sausage (about 1 link)

1/4 cup bread crumbs

Minced parsley

1 egg

12 squid tubes (about 1 pound)

1/4 cup olive oil

1 onion, minced

2 cloves garlic, minced

1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes

1/3 cup white wine

2 cups chopped canned tomatoes and juice

2 tablespoons capers

Salt and freshly ground black pepper

1. Cut the potatoes into bite-size pieces and place in a pot of simmering water fitted with a steamer or rack. Steam until tender, about 15 minutes.

2. Remove the sausage meat from the skin and crumble it into a mixing bowl. Add the bread crumbs and 1 tablespoon parsley and beat together with a wooden spoon until well mixed. It will form a pretty tight ball. Add the egg and continue mixing until the egg is well incorporated. The mixture will loosen up a lot.

3. Fill the squid tubes with the sausage mixture. You can do this with your fingers or with a small spoon, but by far the easiest way is to use a pastry bag. Fill the squid no more than half full; the mixture will expand during cooking. Depending on the size of the squid, there may be some sausage mixture left over. Seal the openings with toothpicks.

4. Heat the olive oil over medium-high heat. When the oil is quite hot, add the stuffed squid and cook on both sides until the surface begins to color, about 2 minutes total.

5. Remove the squid to a plate and keep warm. Empty all but about 1 tablespoon of the oil from the skillet, leaving behind any browned bits that have stuck to the bottom of the pan.

6. Add the onion and cook until soft, about 3 minutes. Add the garlic and cook until it’s fragrant, about 2 minutes. Add crushed red pepper flakes and the wine and stir, scraping the bottom of the pan to free any of those browned bits. Cook until the wine reduces to a syrup, about 5 minutes.

7. Add the tomatoes and juice and cook until they begin to thicken, about 3 minutes. Add the capers and season with salt and pepper.

8. Return the squid to the pan, reduce the heat to low, cover with a lid and simmer gently 15 minutes. Add the cooked potatoes, replace the lid, and simmer until the squid can be easily pierced with a knife, about 15 minutes more.

9. Spoon into warmed broad soup or pasta bowls and sprinkle with more parsley. Remove toothpicks and serve immediately.

Each of 6 servings: 275 calories; 17 grams protein; 24 grams carbohydrates; 3 grams fiber; 11 grams fat; 3 grams saturated fat; 220 mg. cholesterol; 382 mg. sodium.