A work friend found the original recipe for this in a magazine, modified it, and passed it on to me—and I modified it some more. Then my mom asked for it and I had to write it down, so here we are!
First round
1 T olive oil
6 minced garlic cloves, or 1-1/2 t garlic powder.
1 t red pepper flakes
1/2 t salt
1 lb italian sausage
Second round
1 28-oz can crushed tomatoes (the cheaper and closer to puree, the better. I guess you could use sauce; I never have), plus water used to rinse the can, not quite a canful.
16 oz ridged penne (you can use ziti, but I like penne better).
Another 1/2 t salt
Third round
1/3 c heavy cream
1/2 c parmesan, grated.
1/4 c fresh basil or 1 T dried
Fourth round
2 c mozzarella.
Preaheat oven to 475.
First round: Fry up the garlic in the oil til it's dead. If not using real garlic, fry up the first 5 ingredients together.
Second round: Add the tomatoes, water, pasta, and second round of salt.
Cook, stirring often and adjusting heat to maintain vigorous simmer, until pasta is almost but not yet tender. Don't overcook -- there'll still be a lot of liquid in the mixture and pasta should be pretty al dente (unless you like it really squishy). (Note: The original recipe says to do this covered, but neither Erin nor I own a pan big enough to do this, and open works fine.)
Third round: When pasta is at the desired squish stage, stir in cream, parmesan, and basil till all combined and melted. (I've never adjusted the burner for this step because I'm forgetful but Erin tells me she turns it off completely.)
Fourth round: Sprinkle mozzarella evenly over the top. Transfer skillet to oven and bake until cheese has melted and browned, about 10 minutes.
Remove and let sit for 5 minutes, then serve.