This 30-minute, creamy pasta dish is cozy and comforting. Makes a perfect weeknight family dinner.

Every mom needs a good 30-minute pasta recipe in her back pocket.

(And not just “dump jarred sauce over cooked pasta”–though believe me, that particular dish makes an appearance on our menu sometimes too.)

This Cozy Weeknight Sausage & Spinach Pasta can be that back-pocket-pasta-dish for you. It is for us.

It makes so many appearances on my Real Mom Menu that I figured I’d share the recipe (I feature our dinner game plan in my weekly emails–sign up for those here).

This recipe was inspired by Pinch of Yum’s Date Night Rigatoni. It’s simplified (and lightened up) for a simple weeknight family meal.

How to Make Sausage & Spinach Pasta

While your pasta water is coming to a boil, heat oil in large skillet. Add sausage and cook, breaking it up into bite-sized pieces. (I don’t drain the fat from the sausage, but you can if you’d like.)

When sausage is almost done, add the garlic and stir to cook. Add tomato paste and broth and stir until combined.

Stir in heavy cream.

Then add the chopped spinach. It will look like a lot of greens, but will wilt down nicely.

Add the cooked pasta and stir, drizzling in some reserved pasta water until the sauce is a thickness you like.

Give it a taste and add salt and pepper if you’d like. Then serve, with or without Parmesan cheese on top.

Can you use other pasta shapes?

Sure! Rigatoni, bowties, or penne would also work well with this creamy sauce.

My kids don’t like anything green. Now what?

You can certainly omit the spinach. Or serve them a helping without it. Or let them surgically remove it from their portion and leave you a little pile of greens at the bottom of their bowl.

This pasta also makes excellent leftovers. Enjoy!

Continue to Content

Cozy Weeknight Sausage & Spinach Pasta

Yield: 8 servings

Prep Time: 20 minutes

Cook Time: 10 minutes

Total Time: 30 minutes

This 30-minute pasta dish is cozy, creamy, and comforting.

Print

Ingredients

• 1 pound Cavatappi pasta
• 1 pound Italian sausage, ground
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 3 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 six-ounce can tomato paste
• 1 cup chicken broth
• 1/4 cup heavy cream
• 2.5 ounces fresh baby spinach, roughly chopped (I use half of a five-ounce bag)
• salt and pepper to taste

Instructions

1. Set a pot of well-salted water over medium-high heat, then cook pasta according to package directions, reserving about a cup of pasta water before draining.
2. While water is coming to a boil, heat oil in large skillet. Add sausage and cook, breaking it up into bite-sized pieces.
3. When sausage is almost done, add minced garlic and stir to cook. Add tomato paste and broth and stir until combined.
4. Turn heat to low. Add heavy cream and chopped spinach and stir.
5. Add cooked pasta and stir, drizzling in enough pasta water to thin the sauce a bit.
6. Taste and add salt and pepper if needed.
7. Portion into bowls. Sprinkle with Parmesan cheese if desired.

Notes

For an even creamier sauce, add more heavy cream.

Recommended Products

As an Amazon Associate and member of other affiliate programs, I earn from qualifying purchases.

• 
  Le Creuset Iron Handle Skillet

Nutrition Information:

Yield: 8 Serving Size: 1
Amount Per Serving: Calories: 348Total Fat: 21gSaturated Fat: 8gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 14gCholesterol: 41mgSodium: 596mgCarbohydrates: 25gFiber: 2gSugar: 4gProtein: 16g