Sausage and Sundried Tomato Pasta

One of our favorite chefs is Mario Batali, we have been to three of his restaurants in NYC and they are all outstanding! If you've never tried his food before you are definitely missing out. It is authentic Italian cuisine that makes your mouth water just thinking about it. We bought his cookbook Malto Italiano and have tried numerous recipes and they have all been wonderful. One in particular that we like to make is the Pasta with Sausage and Sun dried tomatoes. It is simple and has minimal ingredients and is great for a quick and easy dinner at home. We have adapted the recipe slightly according to what's available in our supermarket. The recipe follows:
6 cloves garlic, sliced
1 tablespoon of extra virgin olive oil
1 pound sweet Italian sausage, remove from casings
1/2 teaspoon of salt
1/2 teaspoon of black pepper
6 sun dried tomatoes, sliced
1/4 to 1/2 cup of white wine
6 tablespoons of tomato paste
1 tablespoon of chopped fresh basil
1 pound wide pasta, we use a pasta that looks like lasagna noodles but about 3/4" wide, but you can use a fettuccine or paparadelle.
In a large skillet, heat the olive oil over medium high heat, add the garlic and cook until it starts to turn golden brown. Add the sausage meat to the pan and cook until cooked through. Add the salt and pepper to taste. Add the sun dried tomatoes, white wine, and tomato paste and cook until all combined and the wine reduces down. Turn the heat off.
Meanwhile fill a large pot with water and place on high heat with the lid on, until water starts to boil. Salt the water and add your pasta, cook according to package instructions. Reserve about 1/4 cup of the pasta water before you drain the pasta.
Add the drained pasta to the large skillet with the sausage mixture and toss with a little bit of the starchy pasta water. Add the chopped basil and toss one more time. Now its ready to serve!