Pasta alla norcina is a pasta dish known and adored by everyone, young and old. An easy-to-make recipe that combines the savouriness of sausage with the enveloping creaminess of sheep's milk ricotta. A dish that, for the most refined palates, can be enriched with a generous sprinkling of truffle, either grated or flaked. Usually short pasta (such as penne rigate) is used, but this sauce is also perfect for other types of pasta, such as strangozzi and cappelletti.

First finely chop the onion and brown it in a pan with a little extra virgin olive oil. Now add the crumbled sausage, let it brown for a few minutes and then deglaze with white wine. Pour the sheep's milk ricotta into the pan with a little of the pasta cooking water. Stir everything together. Drain the pasta al dente and toss it into the pan, letting it season for two minutes over a high heat.

Serve with a sprinkling of Parmesan cheese and if you like also a sprinkling of black pepper.

VARIANTS: A variation of norcina involves using cooking cream instead of sheep's milk ricotta. This interpretation is probably due to the long shelf life of the product, but in the area of origin this substitution is not appreciated.