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Creamy Tuscan Sausage Pasta is pretty much a one pan wonder you will want to cook over and over again! Perfect for a busy night, this is a hearty comforting dish that will truly satisfy.
Creamy Tuscan flavor is exquisite, divine and goes are favorites on my blog. These tried and true tuscan recipes are a perfect example, try Creamy Tuscan Scallops, Shrimp or Chicken.
Italian Sausage Pasta
This is super easy pasta that will taste like you slaved over it all day. This Tuscan pasta has tender pasta, savory sausage, flavorful sun-dried tomatoes and spinach all smothered in a creamy decadent sauce. It’s insanely delicious and it’s fast. You can even argue that it’s made in one pan, especially if you already had pasta already cooked. This creamy sausage pasta hits the spot when comes to wanting something full of flavor and comforting. It’s going to become a quick family favorite.
This will feel like you’re eating at a fancy restaurant or having an intimate dinner for two all in the comfort of your own home. Pair this with a side of breadsticks, some roasted vegetables and a tasty chocolate dessert and you have fine dining on busy weekday at home. Whether it’s your first time with a Tuscan sauce or not, you have to try this tonight! You are going to love the way the sausage and sun-dried tomato come together in this sauce. It’s heavenly.
What Does “Tuscan” Mean?
Tuscan food is based on the Italian idea of cucina povera or “poor cooking.” It’s a concept of cooking that started very literally. It means simple meals that are inexpensive and could easily be made into large amounts. For instance this recipe can be doubled super easily as could this Tuscan pasta salad or vegetable and chicken stew. They are filling dishes that taste amazing without super expensive ingredients.
Tuscan cooking doesn’t use complicated seasonings or elaborate ingredients or even fancy creations. This is because they focus on using fresh, high quality ingredients that bring out incredible flavors without the extras. It’s delicious done simply and done right!
Ingredients for Sausage Pasta
Creating this creamy dish is fast and easy and doesn’t take a bunch of crazy ingredients. Pick your favorite type of ground sausage, pork, chicken and turkey all work really well. And you can control the spice level by what kind of sausage you get. Look for sun dried tomatoes either in the produce section or the canned vegetable aisle.
- Penne Pasta: Cook the pasta al dente
- Ground Sausage: Pick your favorite kind, mild, or spicy.
- Heavy Cream: This will create the creaminess in the sauce.
- Chicken Broth: Adds richness and flavor.
- Garlic Powder: Garlic is great flavor in this tuscan pasta.
- Italian Seasoning: I love this seasoning, it has all the great spices together. You can make your own here.
- Parmesan cheese: Love this cheese with this dish. Fresh is best if you have it.
- Spinach: Gives color, vitamins and nutrition.
- Sun Dried Tomatoes: Sweet and savory, these are just too good.
Making Pasta with Sausage
Truly this dish couldn’t be easier. You are going to love that it tastes so amazing but is so simple to through together. It’s perfect for a busy weekday, or a quiet weekend. Either way you have to try it!
- Pasta: Bring a large pot to boil and cook the pasta according to package directions.
- Sausage: In a large skillet add the sausage. Cook and crumble until it is no longer pink. Set aside on a plate
- Sauce: Add the heavy cream, chicken broth, garlic powder, Italian seasoning and parmesan cheese. Whisk over medium high heat until it starts to thicken. Add the spinach and sun-dried tomatoes and let it simmer until the spinach starts to wilt. Add the sausage back to the pan and add the pasta and stir until heated throughout.
Tips and Variations for Tuscan Sausage Pasta
Use your imagination and what you have on hand to create this splendid dish.
- Pasta: I love using pasta that can really soak up the sauce and hold it in its crevices. For this creamy sausage pasta you can use almost any pasta you like, even spaghetti if that’s what you have on hand. Try cavatappi, rigatoni, conchiglie, or fusilli for fun and ease.
- Al dente: Cook your pasta al dente. This means that the pasta is tender but is still chewy and holds it shape with a bit of firmness. This will allow the pasta to absorb the sauce a bit and hold on to the flavor in every bite.
- Sausage: You can use just about any sausage you would like. I prefer to use Italian sausage, which is just sausage flavored with Italians type spices versus regular sausage, but both will work. Italian sausage can be found in both mild and spicy, and either taste amazing. For lower fat versions try chicken or turkey Italian sausage.
- Heavy Cream: You can use half and half instead of heavy cream to also cut a few calories but it won’t quite have that richness.
- Spinach: If you don’t have fresh spinach, frozen will work. Be sure to really squeeze out any of the extra liquid. Kale and Swiss chard can also be used.
How to Store Creamy Tuscan Sausage Pasta
Like most Italian dishes, they are almost better the next day after the flavors have had time to meld together. Keep leftovers tightly covered in fridge for up to 4 days.
You can also keep this frozen for up to 4 months. Thaw overnight in the fridge and reheat in the microwave or on the stove. If it needs thinning add a bit of chicken broth or water as it heats.
More Pasta Recipes to Devour
Pasta is an ideal comfort food, its customizable, filling and a great energy source. Adding pasta to leftovers is a great way to stretch meals and make them go further. Pasta is tender and you can flavor it in so many ways and with so many different foods, and it all just works. Pasta comes in so many fun shapes too. Try something new the next time you are at the store and grab a type of pasta you’ve never tried before. It puts a fun spin on old favorites. Need a new way to serve up pasta tonight? Try one of these tried and true favorites for dinner that’s guaranteed to win the family over.
- One Pot Cajun Chicken Alfredo Pasta
- Slow Cooker Pasta E Fagioli Soup
- Creamy Bacon Carbonara
- Lemon Garlic Parmesan Shrimp
- Three Cheese Stuffed Pasta Shells
Creamy Tuscan Sausage Pasta
Ingredients
- 8 ounce penne pasta uncooked
- 1 Pound Ground Sausage
- 2 cups heavy cream
- 1/2 cup chicken broth
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 teaspoon italian seasoning
- 1 cup parmesan cheese
- 2 cups spinach chopped
- 1/2 cup sun dried tomatoes
Instructions
- Bring a large pot to boil and cook the pasta according to package directions.
- In a large skillet add the sausage. Cook and crumble until it is no longer pink. Set aside on a plate.
- Add the heavy cream, chicken broth, garlic powder, italian seasoning, and parmesan cheese. Whisk over medium high heat until it starts to thicken. Add the spinach and sundried tomatoes and let it simmer until the spinach starts to wilt. Add the sausage back to the pan and add the pasta and stir until heated throughout.
Video
Nutrition
Serves: 6
All nutritional information is based on third party calculations and is only an estimate. Each recipe and nutritional value will vary depending on the brands you use, measuring methods and portion sizes per household.
This is really good! I didn’t have heavy cream but used half and half and then added a bar of cream cheese too!
Fantastic!! A friend shared this link on FB. I made it to give an older lady at church who doesn’t cook much anymore. It was her 82nd birthday and since I had all the ingredients on hand and it was a quick dish, I put it together Sunday morning. I also packed up a serving for my sister and am happy to say both ladies loved it! One said it was one of the tastiest bites she’s had in a long time and the other said it was out-of-this-world delicious!
I made two small changes. Used 3/4 cup of fresh cherry tomatoes that I sliced in half since I’m not a fan of sun dried tomatoes. When the skins blistered off in the sauce I removed them. Also used a half cup of Pinot Grigio instead of chicken broth as I find wine creates such depth of flavor as compared to broth. (Neither of the ladies drink alcohol and they were not offended by the taste of the wine.)
I did use a cornstarch slurry to thicken up the sauce because even using the heaving whipping cream it seemed a bit thin.
I loved how it say it was to make—no hours of standing on my feet doing prep.
Thank you for a great recipe!!
One of the best recipes I’ve made!!
I can’t use heavy cream because of a lactose intolerance. Will the recipe work with lactose free milk, if I add some corn starch as a thickener?
You could try that! There is also dairy-free heavy cream at most local grocery stores that you can use instead!
Soooo good and easy. I made this tonight for a friend coming over for dinner. It was so quick to make. So tasty. Only thing I would change is to add more spinach ( but i love spinach)
Did anyone try and make this recipe in an instant pot? I might try making it tomorrow and just may try it. If someone has, I would love to hear any suggestions, thanks.
Do you clean the grease and drippings from sausage before adding cream and chicken stock to pan?
No, don’t clean it in between. This will maintain the flavor.
Turned out ok, didn’t really thicken at all. More so just melted the parm cheese. Tried simmering for like 5 minutes. So idk if I’ll make again
When things don’t thickened, I mix up some corn starch with water and carefully add
This was so delicious! I’m not a very diverse cook and this was super easy to make. I used Aidelles Italian sausage and cut it up and browned it. I also used freshed cherry tomatoes because that’s what I had already. Added a little more seasoning and it was so yummy!
Can you use Jimmy dean sausage or do you use Italian sausage?
I used Jimmy Dean All Natural sausage, and it came out amazing.
We try to find new recipes every week to try so we can break up the monotony of the same ol same ol. A lot of these that we try fall short from the description, this one does not! We will add this one to the rotation! I did add more of the spices than what was called for, IMHO, most recipes are light on the spices.