Creamy Italian Sausage Pasta …

When we stock up on groceries, Italian sausage is always on the shopping list. It’s a savory meat to add to any pasta recipe and gives every dish an incredible amount of flavor. This particular dish, however, is always on our meal rotation. Creamy Italian Sausage Pasta has a very slight spicy kick to it and the parmesan, broth, garlic, and heavy cream create an almost buttery-like cream sauce. It is SO GOOD!

The Queen of all pasta dishes …

How pretty is this recipe? Really, she’s gorgeous.

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What do you need to make Creamy Italian Sausage Pasta?

We love to add in veggies whenever we can in order to provide some variety to our diet. Not that the words “creamy”, “pasta”, and “sausage” evoke thoughts of a low-calorie meal but it does tell me it’s going to be ridiculously delicious! So just grab the vegetables you’ve already got in your fridge, toss them in this recipe, and then you’ll feel like you’re making super healthy choices. Easy.

You will need the following simple ingredients:

Pasta, any variety – 16 ounces ( cook pasta al dente and pasta water drained )
2 tablespoons of olive oil
Red bell pepper – 1 medium size, chopped (or substitute chopped sweet red pepper )
Onion – 1 medium size, chopped (a yellow onion or white onion)
Ground spicy Italian sausage – 1 pound ground sausage (or you can substitute sweet Italian sausage or mild Italian sausage )
Fresh garlic – 6 cloves garlic , minced
Italian seasoning – 1 1/2 teaspoons
Salt and pepper
Flour – 1 1/2 tablespoons
Chicken Broth – 2/3 cup
Heavy Cream – 2 cups
Fresh baby spinach – 3/4 cup
Parmesan cheese – shredded, 1 cup
Dried red pepper flakes, 1 tablespoon
Parsley – dried or fresh, 2 teaspoons

ingredients for creamy Italian sausage pasta recipe on a whilte marble counter.

How to make Creamy Italian Sausage Pasta …

First, in a large pot or Dutch oven, cook your pasta according to the instructions on the packaging. You can really use almost any type of pasta for this recipe. I love to use the Penne pasta noodles because tiny bits of the sauce makes their way inside the center of the cooked pasta, and well, it’s yummy.

boiling penne pasta in a blue cast iron dutch oven

Once your timer is up on the pasta, drain the pasta water, and set it aside. I like to add a little bit of butter to stir around the tender pasta though … just a personal preference. This will help ensure the noodles don’t stick together while waiting to assemble your dish. And … it just tastes good. But, it is totally optional. You can leave the butter out and once you drop the noodles into the parmesan sauce and savory sausage mixture, it will help separate any of the stuck-together pasta. I just like butter, that’s all.

cooked penne pasta in a large blue dutch oven with a steel slated spoon.

While the noodles are cooking, grab a large skillet and heat the olive oil over medium heat. Then toss in the chopped onions and bell peppers.

chopped onions and red bell peppers in a large skillet

Continue to stir and cook the veggies over medium heat until the onions have softened and appear translucent.

sauting red bell peppers and onions in olive oil in a large skillet

Next add some bold Italian flavors by browning the sausage, and sprinkle in the Italian seasoning, a 1/2 teaspoon salt, and a teaspoon of black pepper.

adding vegetables and seasonings prior to browning italian sausage

Continue to stir to combine the sausage, seasonings, and veggies while slowly browning the meat to really enhance the flavor of Italian sausage.

browning Italian sausage with peppers and onions.

When the Italian sausage has browned and is no longer pink, reduce to low heat, and stir in the garlic. Continue to stir for about 2 minutes as the garlic is fragrant and releases its yummy flavors.

Since the sausage has browned completely, now is a good time to start sampling a little taste here and there to see if it needs a little more seasoning. So do a taste test, add a little extra salt, pepper, or Italian seasoning, stir well, and then taste again. Continue to adjust as necessary but do it slowly. In other words, you can always add more.

adding flour to italian sausage meat mixture for creamy italian sausage pasta dish.

I usually like to drain the fat when I’m browning any type of meat and you can still do that if you prefer, however, it adds so much flavor to the veggies and pasta sauce. It’s incredible!

Stir in the flour and mix it well for about two minutes to blend it into the meat.

Pourng chicken broth into cooked Italian sausage and vegetables

Add the chicken broth and combine well.

pouring in heavy cream to the Italian sausage and vegetable meat mixture.

Next pour in the heavy cream and red pepper flakes, then mix well.

Reduce the heat on your stove to a simmer and cook for an additional 10 minutes to blend your flavors together. Stir occasionally.

The sauce will begin to appear frothy in color and texture and at this point will start to thicken up. Sample a small taste to see if you need more seasonings. Adjust by adding a very tiny amount at a time to ensure you don’t over-season.

Once the flavor is to your liking, remove from the heat and move the pasta pot to the heated burner.

stirring in browned italian sausage, red bell peppers, onions, and cream into cooked penne pasta.

Pour the sauce and meat mixture into the pasta and thoroughly combine the two together.

dried red pepper flakes added to creamy italian sausage pasta in a blue pot.

Continue stirring in order to coat every Penne pasta noodle with the scrumptious sauce for about 1 minute. This is really just to heat up the noodles a bit with heat from the sauce and from the stove burner.

chopped spinach added to creamy Italian sausage pasta in a blue dutch oven.

Stir in the chopped baby spinach and stir until it wilts and softens.

Turn off the heat from the stovetop and sprinkle in the Parmesan cheese and additional dried red pepper flakes (optional). Stir well and give it a taste test. Add more seasonings if you feel it needs just a tad more heat. But your creamy sausage pasta is almost ready to serve!

creamy parmesan cheese mixed with pasta and Italian sausage in a blue Dutch oven.

Remove from the stove and serve immediately and top each plate with a sprinkle of dried parsley and extra Parmesan cheese.

creamy italian sausage pasta served in a black bowl and plate with a slice of bread and sprinkled with Parmesan cheese.

Yum.

What sides can you serve with this easy weeknight dinner?

This dinner recipe is perfect for the whole family on busy nights!

A green salad is always perfect!
Garlice Rosemary Breadsticks
Rosemary French Bread
Any steamed vegetable like broccoli, green beans, peas, or carrots!

How do I store Creamy Italian Sausage Pasta leftovers?

Store all leftovers of this creamy pasta dish in an airtight container and refrigerate promptly. Reheat each serving in the microwave and eat within 3 days.

Looking for more tasty recipes? Try one of these …

Creamy Italian Sausage Pasta

Coogan’s Kitchen

This dish is always on our meal rotation. Creamy Italian Sausage Pasta has a very slight spicy kick to it and the Parmesan, broth, garlic, and cream create an almost buttery-like sauce. It is SO GOOD!

5 from 7 votes

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Prep Time 20

Cook Time 25

Course Dinner, Main Course

Servings servings

Equipment

Large pot
Large Skillet
Pasta strainer

Ingredients

16 oz pasta
2 tbsp olive oil
1 medium red bell pepper , chopped
1 medium onion , chopped
1 lb ground Italian sausage , sweet, mild, or hot
6 cloves garlic , minced
1½ tsp Italian seasoning
salt + pepper , to preferred taste
1½ tbsp flour
⅔ cup chicken broth
2 cups heavy cream
½ cup fresh spinach , chopped
1 cup shredded parmesan cheese
1 tbsp dried red pepper flakes
2 tsp parsley , dried or fresh

Instructions

Pasta

Cook the pasta in a large pot according to package directions.

Creamy Meat Sauce

While the pasta cooks, heat the olive oil over medium heat in a large skillet and add the bell pepper and onions.
Mix in the Italian sausage, Italian seasoning, ½ teaspoon of salt, and 1 teaspoon of pepper. Cook until the sausage has browned and the veggies have softened.
Reduce heat slightly and stir in the garlic for 1 to 2 minutes.
Drain about half (or less) of the fat from the skillet and then return to the stovetop.
Stir in the broth, heavy cream, and dried red pepper flakes. Add the flour and mix well for about 2 minutes. Bring to a simmer while stirring occasionally.
**Sample a small taste to see if the sauce needs more flavor and seasonings. Adjust by adding a tiny amount at a time.
Simmer the sauce for 10 minutes over low heat until the sauce has slightly thickened. Remove from heat.
Combine the pasta and the sauce. Add in the chopped spinach and stir until it is slightly wilted and soft – about 1 minute.
Turn off the heat. Stir in the parmesan cheese.
Sprinkle with parsley prior to serving.

Notes

Nutrition Disclaimer

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Keyword Creamy Italian Recipes, Italian Sausage Recipes, Pasta Recipes, Skillet Meals

Did you try this recipe?Let us know how it was in the comments below!

{© Coogan’s KitchenAll content and images are copyright protected. Sharing the link for this recipe is encouraged and greatly appreciated, however copying and/or posting full recipes to any social media/blog/website without full credit and the appropriate link is prohibited. Thank you so much for understanding!}