Easy Pasta with Sausage Ragu

FOUND IT: At the NY Times' Bitten blog.

I typically avoid making my own pasta sauce, because it's time consuming and you can get really good sauce in a jar. With that said, this is pretty quick, easy and good.

Ingredients:

• 1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
• 1 medium onion, chopped
• 1/2 pound Italian sausage, removed from casing if necessary
• 1 cup milk
• 1/4 cup tomato paste
• Salt and pepper
• 1 pound pasta
• At least 1/2 cup freshly grated Parmesan

Put the oil in a 10-inch skillet, and turn the heat to medium. Once it's hot, add the onion and cook, stirring occasionally, until it softens, about 5 minutes. Add the sausage in bits, and turn the heat to medium high; cook, stirring occasionally, until the sausage is nicely browned, 5 to 10 minutes.

Add milk, tomato paste, some salt and pepper; stir to blend, and simmer for about 5 minutes, or until thickened but not dry. Keep it warm if necessary, and if it becomes too thick, add a little more milk or water.

Meanwhile, cook the pasta, and drain it when it's done. Toss pasta with sauce and parmesan cheese and enjoy.