Italian Sausage and Peppers

From the garden

• 4 large bell peppers, seeded and cut into thick strips
• 2 medium yellow onions, halved and thickly sliced
• 3 cloves garlic, sliced

From the pantry

• 1½ lb Italian sausage links, sweet or hot
• 2 tbsp olive oil
• 1 tsp dried oregano
• ½ cup dry white wine · or use chicken stock
• 1 tbsp tomato paste
• red pepper flakes (optional) · a pinch, if using sweet sausage
• 4 pieces crusty rolls or Italian bread
• salt · to taste
• black pepper

1. Heat the olive oil in a wide, heavy skillet over medium heat. Brown the sausage links well on all sides, 8–10 minutes total. They won't be cooked through yet. Move them to a plate.
2. Add the peppers and onions to the drippings with a pinch of salt and cook 10–12 minutes, stirring occasionally, until they've collapsed by half and picked up brown edges. Stir in the garlic, oregano, and tomato paste and cook 1 minute more.
3. Pour in the wine, scraping the browned bits off the pan bottom, and let it bubble down by half, about 2 minutes.
4. Nestle the sausages back into the vegetables, cover, and simmer over medium-low for 10–12 minutes, turning the links once, until they're cooked through and the peppers are completely tender and saucy. Taste and season with salt, black pepper, and pepper flakes if you want heat.
5. Slice the sausages on the bias if you like and pile everything onto split crusty rolls, spooning the pan juices over the top.