Creamy Sausage and Spinach Pasta
Creamy Sausage and Spinach Pasta with Parmesan Cream Sauce. This easy Italian pasta dinner is ready in 20 minutes!
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CREAMY SAUSAGE AND SPINACH PASTA
I know carbs are the enemy these days but sometimes you just want to fall face first into a pile of creamy pasta with no regrets.
Truth is that this is actually an old recipe on my blog (from 2011) formerly named Sausage Escarole Pasta. My old roommate Steph emailed this to me years ago. We were roomies forever and she and I shared the love for food so I trusted anything she loved.
As I shopped for the ingredients to update the recipe I was strolling the produce aisle looking for escarole. Escarole isn’t a very familiar ingredient that most of us use. I wasn’t really even sure what it was the first time I made this (it’s a kind of lettuce similar to Romaine) and figured most people wouldn’t know what it was either.
Guess what is a great substitute for escarole? Spinach! So if you’re scared of escarole, spinach works wonderfully as well!
The cream mixture is pretty basic. Cream, chicken broth, Parmesan, garlic powder, and seasonings (rosemary or Italian seasonings).
Add some spinach at the end and let it wilt down.
Add the crumbled sausage back to the mixture.
Now if your pan is big enough you can definitely add it all back to the pan and toss it right there.
Or if you have a big pasta serving bowl toss it in there.
WHAT KIND OF PASTA TO USE?
This recipe calls for rigatoni but any short pasta like penne, ziti, or farfalle can be used as well.
OTHER ONE-PAN RECIPES
- One-Pot Sausage Broccoli Pasta
- One-Pan Chicken and Spinach Orzo
- One-Pot Creamy Sausage and Tomato Tortellini
- One-Pan Chicken Enchilada Skillet
- One-Pan Chicken Fajita Rice
- Easy Beef Burrito Skillet
- One-Pan Cheesy Chicken, Broccoli, and Rice
- One-Pot Bacon Broccoli Pasta
Creamy Sausage and Spinach Pasta
Ingredients
- 1 lb rigatoni, or short pasta
- 1 lb ground Italian sausage
- 2 cups heavy cream
- 1 cup chicken broth
- 1 cup grated Parmesan cheese
- 2 teaspoons garlic powder
- 1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper
- 1 teaspoon chopped fresh rosemary or dried Italian seasonings, (see note)
- 2 cups spinach leaves, or escarole
Instructions
- Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Add the pasta and cook according to the package directions. Drain and set aside.
- In a large saucepan, brown the sausage until no longer pink. Remove from pan.
- Add the cream, chicken broth, Parmesan cheese, garlic powder, red pepper, and rosemary to the pan. Simmer for 10 minutes or until mixture is desired thickness. Add the spinach back to the pan for a few minutes to wilt down. Add the sausage back into the cream.
- Add the pasta in the pan (if your saucepan is big enough) or combine in a large swerving bowl.
Notes
I added frozen spinach and feta instead of Parmesan, I didn’t have penne or any other pasta like that on hand so I just used angel hair lol. A+! Super easy.
Thank you!
Do you know the nutritional facts on this recipe?
Same. Can i get the nutritional information please.
Just added it!
So delicious!!! Added mushrooms into the sauce and it is next level!
Thank you!
Hello, could this be made with asparagus instead of spinach?
Of course!
This is a delicious, rich, EASY weeknight meal. It was really reminiscent to me of Zuppa Toscana, but in pasta form! I used hot italian sausage for extra kick, and brown rice noodles to keep it gluten free, but stuck to the recipe exactly otherwise. It’s wonderful topped with a little extra parmesan and fresh cracked black pepper. Thanks so much for this recipe!
Thank you for your feedback! I appreciate it.
Incredibly delicious and simple! I’m a single girl who loves easy quick recipes like this one and it did not disappoint!
So happy to hear that!
I made this using penne pasta and frozen spinach as it’s what I had on hand and it was fantastic. I served with a raw julienned zucchini, summer squash and carrot salad and it was a huge hit. Will be making again soon!
Oh noes!! I just put everything together and my spinach (fresh) started clumping and the sauce got soupy. Not sure where I went wrong?
Mine is soupy too…?
Keep simmering the sauce. Trust me it goes from thin to thick. If you don’t want to wait add more Parmesan.
I ALWAYS want to fall face-first into a bowl of creamy pasta. Just sayin’. #noregrets
This recipe looks yummy!! I’m slowly getting into sausage in my pasta dishes, and easing in with a cream sauce seems like the perfect way to enjoy the savory flavor!!
Yum!! This looks and sounds so good, my kiddos and hubby will love it. Can’t wait to try, pinned!
Looks delicious, I like almost all of your recipes, they are very creative and so so yummy.
xlpharmacy
@Susan,
We skied at Copper Mountain. My husband is from Thornton so we try to make it out at least once a year. It was gorgeous. Powder the first day.
Great idea for a main meal!
wow, that looks so delicious! Yum 🙂 Drooling 😉
This sounds like a wonderful pasta dish!
I know what ya mean…even when I was a young athelete I was finding spots on my body that were so sore and didn’t even knew existed, from skiing! It is a great workout and I’m sure very different for you if you live in Florida! The altitude always bothers me, I get very sick, and I am from KS, and grew up going skiing each year and never adapted to the altitude! Hey, another pasta recipe that would be cute for St Patricks is on my food blog called, Creamy tortellini with spinach and tomatoes, check it out! daybydaysunshine.blogspot.com
Have fun skiing! I’m only four hours away from it, I should plan another trip, but I know how sore I get and I’m afraid!
I’m a new follower to your blog. I can’t tell you how many wonderful recipes I’ve borrowed from you.
Now this one you posted is just my kind of thing too.
Where in Colorado did you go skiing? I live in Colorado, but I’m experiencing some absolutely beautiful, warm weather right now. It was even nice outside late last night. Makes me thing Spring might just be here. However, Colorado weather does have a way of playing big tricks on us. We could easily have a blizzard tomorrow.
Welcome to Colorado anyway, hope you enjoyed it.