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Easy cheesy Italian sausage pasta is creamy, delicious, and perfectly spiced. It’s a family favorite ready in only 20 minutes!
Italian sausage adds the perfect flavor to any pasta dish. We also love Italian sausage in soups like our Tortellini Soup or Sausage Soup!
We Love Pasta!
Our family has always been long-time fans of pasta, as well as long-time fans of sausage. It’s only natural to combine the two in this tasty dinner idea to make Italian Sausage Pasta. It was an instant hit and is on our rotation of easy dinner ideas.
We usually make Pasta or a similar Italian dish on Tuesdays each week, and this one that is never missed. The whole family loves it!
Why we love it:
- Quick. It only takes about 20 minutes to throw everything together. A quick prep time is perfect for busy weeknights!
- Easy. There are few ingredients and just a few steps.
- Tasty. This is a hit with both kids and adults alike – it’s packed with flavor!
Simple Ingredients
- bow tie pasta – Substitute pasta with a bed of White Rice, Cauliflower Rice, Mashed Potatoes, or Baked Potatoes.
- mild Italian sausage – or use spicy pork sausage, chicken sausage, or turkey sausage. You can even exchange the sausage for ground beef or ground chicken.
- onion
- minced garlic or garlic cloves
- crushed red pepper flakes – optional to taste
- Italian stewed tomatoes – canned Diced tomatoes work too, but we usually will add extra seasonings
- heavy cream
- salt
- dried basil
- Parmesan cheese – Substitute the Parmesan with mozzarella, or a blend of provolone, fontina, Romano, and asiago.
Ready in 20 minutes
- PASTA. Cook pasta according to package directions in a large pot. Drain and set aside.
- SAUSAGE. Meanwhile, in a large skillet over medium heat, cook sausage, onion, garlic, and pepper flakes, stirring, for 4–5 minutes, or until meat is no longer pink. Drain excess fat.
- SAUCE. Stir in tomatoes, cream, salt, basil, and ½ cup Parmesan and bring to a boil.
- Reduce heat and simmer, uncovered and stirring occasionally, for 6–8 minutes or until thickened.
- SERVE. Add pasta to the sausage mixture and toss. Garnish with remaining ½ cup Parmesan before serving.
Recipe Tips
- Variations.
- Meatless. Try this pasta by omitting the sausage altogether.
- Veggies. Add veggies such as zucchini, bell peppers, mushrooms, or spinach to this easy pasta recipe.
- Serving suggestions. Try serving this pasta with Fried Zucchini, Cheesy Garlic Bread, Chicken Caesar Salad, Garlic Knot Recipe, or Olive Garden Breadsticks.
Storing Info
- STORE leftovers in an airtight container in the refrigerator for 3-4 days.
- Reheat in the microwave, oven, or a pan on the stove. The pasta may have absorbed some of the liquid leaving it dried out. Feel free to add a bit more cream before heating.
- FREEZE. Whether you’re freezing this ahead of time or wish to save any leftovers. Cool and pour into an airtight freezer-safe container for up to 4 months.
- Thaw and heat on the stovetop over LOW heat stirring constantly. Add a small amount of cream as needed to revitalize the sauce.
For More Pasta Dishes:
Italian Sausage Pasta Recipe
Easy cheesy Italian sausage pasta is creamy, delicious, and perfectly spiced. It's a family favorite ready in only 20 minutes!
Ingredients
- 1 (16-ounce) package bow tie pasta
- 1 pound mild Italian sausage
- ½ cup chopped onion optional
- 1½ teaspoons minced garlic
- ½ teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes optional
- 2 (14.5-ounce) cans Italian stewed tomatoes drained and chopped
- 1½ cups heavy cream
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon dried basil
- 1 cup shredded Parmesan cheese divided
Instructions
- Cook pasta according to package directions. Drain and set aside.
- Meanwhile, in a large skillet over medium heat, cook sausage, onion, garlic, and pepper flakes, stirring, for 4–5 minutes, or until meat is no longer pink. Drain excess fat.
- Stir in tomatoes, cream, salt, basil, and ½ cup Parmesan and bring to a boil.
- Reduce heat and simmer, uncovered and stirring occasionally, for 6–8 minutes or until thickened.
- Add pasta to sausage mixture and toss.
- Garnish with remaining ½ cup Parmesan before serving.
Video
Notes
Variations: Swap out the mild Italian sausage for chicken sausage, turkey sausage or spicy sausage, or substitute mozzarella or a blend of provolone, fontina, Romano, and Asiago cheeses for the Parmesan. You can also add vegetables such as zucchini, bell peppers, mushrooms or spinach in Step 3.
Nutrition
Serving: 1g, Calories: 650kcal, Carbohydrates: 7g, Protein: 21g, Fat: 60g, Saturated Fat: 30g, Polyunsaturated Fat: 5g, Monounsaturated Fat: 21g, Cholesterol: 167mg, Sodium: 1269mg, Potassium: 368mg, Fiber: 0.4g, Sugar: 3g, Vitamin A: 1286IU, Vitamin C: 4mg, Calcium: 248mg, Iron: 1mg
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
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If I want to add a layer of cheese on top and bake this, would it need extra sauce or pasta water added? How, if at all would you modify this? I’ve made a few times as directed and it’s delicious! Thank you.
Glad you like it! I have not added a layer of cheese on top, but I would maybe add just a little more pasta water & stick under the broiler until cheese is nice & melted.
Wow this was such a winner in my house! Truly so comforting, DELICIOUS, and best of all soooo easy! My only chanGe was that I used one can of tomatoes and about 3 or 4 tablespoons of tomato Paste. The sauce was perfectly thick And coated the noodles beaUtifully. A hungry husband, and my 4 and 2 year old boys all loved it. Thank you for a new recipe to add to the rotation 🙂
You are so welcome! Glad it made the rotation!! Thank you 🙂
is milk bulk italian sausage a typo?
Very good. Quick easy dinner.
I am so glad you think so! Thank you so much for letting me know 🙂
This meal was delicious and so easy to make. My whole family loved it! This has been added to the rotation.
Glad it made the rotation! Thank you for letting me know 🙂
Whats milk bulk italian sausage? And is the heavy whipping cream a necessary? Can I sub Reg milk or half and half? Just because we don’t use it enough so i hate that it goes bad for 1 recipe
Milk bulk Italian sausage is a combination of chicken & pork meats & bulk is the meat without the casing. I have only used the heavy whipping cream, but you can sub whatever you like. It might change it a little, with consistency. Hope you like it!
This was really good! i used canned diced tomatoes, undrained, and just cooked off most of the liquid with the herbs in before i added the cream (I used half and half) I also added 5 oz package of fresh baby spinach, chopped, at the end and let it cook in. I did miss the richness of the full cream, but it was an outstanding dish even without it. thanks so much for sharing.
You are so welcome!! Thank you for sharing what you did. That sounds perfect!
How would you reccom adding in spinach?
I would add it in step 3 🙂 That’s a good idea!!
This has a nice flavor but if I make it again I will reduce the pasta by about half. There wasn’t nearly enough sauce for that much pasta! Thanks for sharing your recipe!
You are so welcome! Thank you for trying it!
Italian sausage pasta is one of the quickest penne pasta recipes that you’ll find. You mix it, cook it, and serve it in less than 20 minutes.
Thank you for sharing that!