This Cheesy Sausage Pasta is the dish that made me fall in love with one-pot pastas all those years ago. It’s fast, easy, SUPER flavorful, and because everything cooks in one pot, there’s barely anything to clean up after dinner. WIN. The flavorful combination of smoky sausage, spicy diced tomatoes with green chiles, and creamy Monterey Jack is simple but irresistible, and it cooks in about 30 minutes. That’s a winner in my book!
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What’s in Cheesy Sausage Pasta?
This recipe was inspired by an absolutely mouth-watering photo I saw on Pinterest, which was this Spicy Sausage Pasta from KevinandAmanda.com. But, of course, I made some changes to fit the ingredients I had on hand. I nixed the heavy cream in the original recipe because I figured that between the cheese and sausage, there’d be plenty of fatty goodness going on. My version ended up being rich, but not so much so that you’ll feel super weighed down. I also added fresh spinach because I have a HUGE bag in my fridge just waiting to be used up. Plus, I felt that the recipe needed a little green.
What Else Can I Add?
Some other vegetable options for this recipe are bell peppers or broccoli, both of which go great with smoked sausage. If you want to add bell peppers, dice them up and saute them with the onions in the beginning. If you want to add broccoli, cut it into very small florets and add it with the pasta so that the broccoli can simmer a little bit and soften. There are so many different ways you can take this recipe… I’m excited to hear what you come up with!
What Type of Pasta to Use
This recipe works great with any short pasta shape (bowties, penne, rotini, etc.). I originally used campanelle (my favorite frilly flower shaped pasta), but I couldn’t find any this time around so I decided to go with wide egg noodles. One note: If you are using regular pasta (not egg noodles, which are a little more delicate), you may need slightly more broth.
Can I Use a Different Cheese?
I particularly love Monterey Jack cheese for this recipe because it melts into a super creamy texture that kind of mixes into the sauce for a super creamy finish…without adding any cream. Other cheeses will also taste great, but they probably won’t have the same creamy finish. You can try cheddar, mozzarella (aim for whole milk mozzarella instead of part-skim), or even a sprinkle of crumbled feta. And remember, pre-shredded cheese won’t melt nearly as well as cheese you shred yourself! ;)
Cheesy Sausage Pasta
Servings 4Ingredients
- 1 yellow onion ($0.38)
- 7 oz. smoked sausage ($1.75)
- 1 Tbsp cooking oil ($0.04)
- 1 10oz. can diced tomatoes with green chiles (Rotel) ($1.00)
- 8 oz. wide egg noodles* ($1.40)
- 1.5 cups chicken broth ($0.20)
- 3 cups fresh spinach ($0.85)
- 1 cup shredded Monterey Jack ($1.25)
- 1 green onion, sliced ($0.20)
Instructions
- Dice the onion and slice the sausage into rounds.
- Add the cooking oil and sausage to a large skillet and cook over medium heat until the sausage is well browned. If there is excess fat in the skillet, drain it off before moving to the next step.
- Add the onions to the skillet with the sausage and continue to sauté until the onions have softened. Allow the moisture from the onions to dissolve any browned bits off the bottom of the skillet.
- Add the diced tomatoes with green chiles (with juices), uncooked pasta, and chicken broth. Stir until everything is evenly combined. It's okay if the broth does not fully cover the pasta.
- Place a lid on the skillet and allow the broth to come up to a boil. When it reaches a boil, turn the heat down to medium-low and let the pasta simmer for about 10 minutes, or until tender. Stir the pasta occasionally, replacing the lid each time.
- Once the pasta is cooked and only a small amount of saucy liquid remains, it's time to add the spinach to the skillet. Gently stir the fresh spinach into the pasta, allowing the residual heat to wilt the spinach.
- Once the spinach has wilted, top the pasta with Monterey Jack cheese. Place the lid back on the skillet and let the pasta heat over low until the cheese is melted and creamy.
- Sprinkle the sliced green onions over top just before serving.
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Notes
Nutrition
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How to Make Cheesy Sausage Pasta – Step By Step Photos
Dice one yellow onion and slice about 7oz. smoked sausage (half of a 14oz. link—you can freeze the rest!) into medallions.
Add the sausage and 1 Tbsp cooking oil to a large skillet and cook over medium heat until the sausage is well browned. If there’s a lot of excess fat in the skillet, drain it off before proceeding to the next step.
Add the onions to the skillet with the sausage and continue to sauté until the onions have softened. Allow the moisture from the onions to dissolve any browned bits off the bottom of the skillet.
Add one 10oz. can of diced tomatoes with green chiles (like Rotel), 8 oz. pasta, and 1.5 cups chicken broth. If you’re using regular pasta (not egg noodles), increase to 2 cups broth.
Stir everything together until well combined. Place a lid on the skillet and allow the broth to come up to a boil. Once boiling, reduce the heat to medium-low and let the pasta simmer for about 10 minutes, stirring occasionally (replacing the lid each time). Make sure the broth maintains a simmer.
While the pasta is cooking, shred about 1 cup of Monterey Jack cheese and slice one green onion. When the pasta is tender and only a small amount of saucy liquid remains in the skillet, it’s time to add the spinach.
Add about three packed cups of fresh spinach to the skillet and carefully stir until the hot pasta wilts the spinach.
Add one cup of shredded Monterey Jack cheese on top of the pasta. Place the lid on the skillet and let it heat over low for a few minutes, or just until the cheese is melted and creamy.
Top the finished pasta with the sliced green onions and serve hot!
Soooo cheeessyyyy. 🤤
I made a vegetarian version of this using soyrizo and vegetable stock. Got rave reviews!
Really, really delicious. The only thing I did different was to add pepper jack cheese instead and some diced peppers. Family raved about it and it was so quick to make. Thanks for all your wonderful recipes.
I had some spinach in my fridge that I had been struggling to use up, and this recipe popped up in my Instagram feed. I followed the recipe exactly, and it turned out great! My husband said three times during the course of his meal how delicious it was. I will definitely be making this recipe again, a real winner!
i want to cook this can you freeze this dish once cooked
I don’t think I’ve tried freezing this one, so I’m not sure how it will hold up. I need to rephotograph it soon, though, so when I do I’ll test it out for ya. :)
I have been making this dish for years and it is now, officially, my 4-year old son’s favorite dish. It’s the first time he has declared a home-cooked dinner (not pizza or PBJ) to be his favorite and that warms my heart for some reason. We all have that dish that Mom made that we always ask for when we visit home, and this just might be it for him.
That makes me so happy to hear! Thank you for sharing. :)
This if a family favorite!
I also make it for my elderly neighbor, it thinks it’s the best meal he has very had!
Delicious and very satisfying! I used whole wheat spiral pasta and a Mexican cheese blend. I doubled the recipe but used just one onion.
Made this tonight (a triple batch!) for about the 5th time, and…man. This recipe NEVER disappoints! I used wide egg noodles this time (delicious!) and turkey smoked sausage. My husband practically floated nose-first down the stairs on the heavenly aroma… :)
I enjoy this immensely! Easy and oh so belly comforting.
Ok I’m not trying to be that girl who questions the nutrition info haha normally whatever I use is super close to what’s listed! But for some reason this one is coming out way off and im sure it must be something im doing! The only substitute im making is using two of the beyond hot Italian “sausage” but even when I looked up the calories in the sausage that’s listed, I still have fewer calories in the fake meat. But this is coming out to 700 cals per serving! Help! Haha when I googled the hillshire farms one listed the whole package is 1,020 calories so half of it would be 510. But 6oz of the beyond meat is 431 cal. So it must be the cheese? 1 cup 4oz is a little confusing… does that mean 12 oz? It probably doesn’t because it would say 1.5 cups in that case. Some websites say that a cup of shredded cheese is 4oz. Anyhow, help! Haha :)
Hello! Nutrition info should *always* be questioned, IMHO. :) Nutrition data calculated on paper like this is never really going to be very accurate because ingredients vary a lot and the databases that we use for ingredient nutrition information are just kind of an average for similar ingredients. I went ahead and recalculated this using the nutrition API that is available through our recipe plugin and it came out a little higher in calories. I also cleaned up the ingredient list a little to make it more readable (it got messy when we switched to a new format years ago). The cheese specifically is 1 cup of shredded cheese, which usually weighs about 4 ounces (this is not the same as 4 fluid ounces). I hope that helps!
I followed the recipe exactly as written – it was wonderful! Two of my husbands friend were here for dinner and just loved it. I serve this dish once every 6-8 weeks, and of course hubby’s friends are invited.
I love the original version of this dish dearly, but due to grocery stock quirks and a bit of poor planning on my part, tonight’s version was made with diced tomatoes with jalapeno and preshredded “queso quesadilla” cheese. Still delicious. Thanks Beth, for this and many others.
I used andouille sausage
Added. Fresh rosemary, Italian seasoning, Salt and pepper, heavy whipping cream, shredded Parmesan cheese extra garlic, and white wine
So, you completely changed the recipe, and then only gave it 3 stars? I guess YOUR recipe was 3 stars then. SMH.
This was soooooo good and so easy ! Thank you for this. The only change I made was to use my favorite spaghetti sauce instead of the canned tomatoes – since my pantry is a bit limited these days – but it turned out fantastic! I added some more spices too: dried basil, dried oregano, garlic powder and some crushed red pepper flakes, all added to the oil while sautéing the diced onions. We used brown rice little mini pasta shells and 4 links of super flavorful bison bratwurst! (Especially yummy treat from CrowdCow in Oregon) Husband usually isn’t a fan of any dish that looks like a casserole – but this one he couldn’t eat enough of it! We’ll be making this again ! Without the cream, it wasn’t too heavy at all, yet still “comfort food” satisfying.
Made this tonight. Super easy and tasty!
This was a big hit with very picky DH.
Almost used regular canned diced tomatoes instead of diced tomatoes with chilis (didn’t think I had them) – glad I didn’t, the chilis really made the dish.
I used turkey kielbasa and protein rotini from aldi, and followed the recipe exactly. I was surprised that it had so much flavor without any added seasoning.
Perfect! I had hot Italian sausage , fresh baby spinach, chicken stock ,cheeses and pastas. I looked online for something to do with the sausage and spinach and wah la!
I added fresh sliced portabella mushrooms( had them) and didn’t use the diced tomatoes but had grape tomatoes I cut in half. I add tomatoes with onions and stock. I used wide egg noodles which were perfect. I added mushrooms with spinach. Cheese in chunks at the end. Delicious !!
Thank you for posting!
Solid four and a half to five star meal. I had to do some improvising with frozen spinach, weird pasta, wrong cheese, not enough sausage etc, but it still came out spicy/novel flavoured and wonderfully filling! Not a weekend showstopper type meal, but a really luxurious weekday meal and variant on pasta that only takes one pot! (Worth more than any other review points on a dark January Wednesday!)
Made it with chicken! Delicious!
Happy to hear it Shaun!
I made this last night and it was so delicious! We are vegetarian, so we actually used Veggie Sausages (Fields Roast Italian style) and Vegetable broth and it was sooo good. At first I was unsure about the Monterey Jack cheese – I thought it would make it too “cheesy” but nope, it made it creamy instead of too heavy and gooey. I used Farfalle pasta and cooked it on the side Al Dente and then added it into the other mixture. Overall, this is a super easy and delicious dish. Be sure to make enough for leftovers ! Thanks for the recipe!
Hooray! Thanks Kyra!
Made it last night with Ro Tel tomato and chili peppers, really spicy and really yummy. I really thought there would leftovers…
Ha bummer! Next time double it!
Making this for the 3rd or 4th time tonight!
More spinach!
You Rock!
Repeats are GOOD!
Delicious and easy. We’ll be eating this one again.
Happy to hear it!
I have been making this recipe for a few years now, and it is still a favorite. Tonight I was out of diced tomatoes so I used salsa instead. Turned out great!
Solid one pot recipe. I added 3 cloves of garlic and more green onions. I also subbed turkey sausage. I feel like you could add beans or corn too. Oh an I have a red pepper flake problem so I sprinkled a generous amount at the end.
This was FANTASTIC!! It has become a regular in our house. I used two bratwurst and took the meat out of the casing and just browned the sausage that way. It was soooo yummy
Made this recipe last night. I also used Farfalle, and used Mexican blend Cheese and some grated Cojita cheese i had on hand. and i used Little smokies sausages. based on that a Serving of this dish is 492 calories. But it was very good. I might play around a bit with it and try turkey sausage next time to cut down on the fat calories.
Seriously delicious. Followed the recipe exactly! I did use farfalle pasta though, which required a couple extra minutes of cooking time. The Monterey Jack cheese makes all the difference. It’s a cheesy dish without feeling heavy. Love it and this website!!!
I tried this recipe with twice the meat, two bell peppers, a cup of extra chicken broth, and rice instead of pasta. I also topped with feta, and it was amazing! This is going to feed me for the next week!
I didnt even make this correctly and it was still delicious!!!!! It was one of those nights before the grocery trip when there is weird stuff left, started cooking kielbasa, spinach and noodles separately and I said to myself, “girl, we can do better.” Quick pinterest search and found this. YUM. Thank you!!!
I was really pleasantly surprised at just how great this turned out! I halved the recipe to enforce portion control and it was still more than enough food. I usually try to make a recipe by the book the first time, but I used some subs I had around, namely Fire Roasted RoTel, egg noodles, low sodium chicken broth and harissa olive oil. I really don’t know if I’ll do anything differently next time but there will definitely be a next time!
This was awesome! I added more of each ingredient to the recipe to make enough for multiple meal-prepped lunches for me. Also added broccoli to the recipe. The only thing I did different was added garlic and I stirred the cheese in to really thicken the sauce! I will make this many, many times again!
I made this recipe and Loved it I also changed it up a bit with an Italian flare. I added fresh garlic and substituted Italian tomatoes. I then added Ricotta cheese and mozzarella for final touch. Delicioso
Thinking of making this tonight. Would it be easy to hide veggies in it if the were shredded?
Hmm, I don’t know, I feel like they’d still be fairly noticeable, since there aren’t any other small shaped ingredients in this. Shredded vegetables hide well in recipes where the other ingredients are also in very small pieces, if that makes sense! :)
Love it! I’ve made it several times. But I use the whole package of sausage.
Trying this tonight, but had to add garlic!!
For some reason the liquid didn’t cover the noodles completely and I needed to double the tomato and broth. But it is delicious!
It’s okay if the broth doesn’t cover the noodles. It still works. :) The lid holds in the steam, which absorbs into the noodles. Plus, you stir it a few times so everything eventually gets it’s time in the liquid.
Can you use whole wheat pasta?
That may absorb the liquid a little differently, so I’d need to test it to see if any adjustments would need to be made.
Great recipe! Easy and not time consuming, I had two hungry teenagers to feed. Only thing I would change next time is to get just tomato dices without the chiles, it was a bit spicy.
This is one of my favs, but I have a new tip! Just went to make this and remembered I didn’t have spinach. Substituted broccoli and it was even better. I put it in when I was cooking the sausage and it soaked up so much flavor. Delicious!!
Great idea!
I love this recipe! To make it vegetarian I switch out the broth with veggie broth… Still haven’t found a good sausage replacement yet
I’m not sure if you’ve tried it before, but Tofurky makes a great sausage. I bet the kielbasa would be really good in this – http://www.tofurky.com/what-we-make/sausages/kielbasa/#flavormenu
I have some Tofurky kielbasa I want to try in this recipe. I’m not vegetarian and have made it with regular sausage but my main concern is does the veggie sausage hold up while the pasta is cooking? Would it fall apart?
They hold up! I’ve used Tofurky Kielbasa and Tofurky Italian Sausage in this and they cook up/hold just like “regular” sausage.
I’ve made this recipe several times and my boyfriend and I both love it! It’s definitely a keeper recipe for us.
This is the easiest, most delicious pasta recipe I’ve tried to date! It’s a great go-to for busy week nights. Goes great with any kind of sausage.
I used turkey sausage & turkey base broth. Very quick, easy & delicious!
Good, easy recipe. Kids ate it up. Added butter and milk (didn’t have any heavy cream) at the end to give it a bit more creamness.
Definitely will make again.
“Sunday dinner with a toddler. Hmm, what to make…?”
I took a chance with this recipe and I must say that for as simple as it proved to be – I was impressed with the amount of flavor it had! I wanted something that was kid-friendly but sophisticated enough for an adult to eat, because anyone with a toddler knows that you quickly grow weary of the “easy finger foods” that toddlers love so much. This was a hit all around the table tonight! Other than using shell-shaped pasta (for the kiddo), smoked turkey sausage, and fire roasted diced tomatoes with garlic – I didn’t change much else – and it came out a lovely consistency. Not too much liquid at all.
Thank you so much for sharing this delicious recipe! We’ll all be going to bed full and satisfied tonight! And I will most certainly be making this again!
I really liked it but to me it was too salty. Wonder if it could of been the smoked beef sausage? Will make again but use a different sausage and see if that caused it..
Probably not the sausage. Try using low sodium broth and low sodium canned tomatoes. By default I always get the low sodium Better Than Bouillon. Can always add more salt… but you can’t take it out, ya know?
This was delicious and super easy! As a first-year college student, it was nice to be able to make a cheap, easy, home-cooked-type meal over fall break when I couldn’t actually go home and all the dining halls are closed. And it was honestly way better than any pasta the dining hall serves! Best part: one pot=less dishes for a lazy 19-year-old like me. Thanks for this yummy recipe!
I just made this right now..about to serve. I know its going to be bomb because it smells soooo good!!
This was awesome. My husband, 15 month old, and 3 year old ate it up.
College student needing to eat on a budget. This tastes soo good! Thank you! :)
My husband and I love this recipe. I make twice a month if not more and it is so easy!
I made this dish last night with turkey sausage for my fiance and he absolutely loved it! It was very tasty without being too spicy. Thank you for the recipe :-)
This was amazing and so easy to make!! I used broccoli cz I didn’t have spinach and #success. Thanks!!
Thanks! I have everything but spinach in the fridge, and I might put in peas instead. This looks yummy!
I just made this tonight, It is DELICIOUS! So creamy
Mmmmm everyone loved it!
How did you get two cups of chicken stock for $.30?
I use Better Than Bouillon to make my chicken broth. It’s a concentrated paste that you mix with water and you can reconstitute any amount that you need (unlike cubes that are in one cup quantities). The quality is much better than cubes, too. The little jar stays good in the refrigerator for just about forever. :)
It really looks yummy.
This was delish!!! I used egg noodles (because that’s what it looked like in the pic), Rotel tomatoes (2 cans because only 10.5 oz per cans and didn’t want to have 1/2 a can left over) and added extra broth, as the liquid didn’t cover the noodles. It turned out perfect. Not to much liquid, and the left overs had no liquid. It had all thickened/absorbed nicely. I used a mexican cheese blend with Monterey Jack listed first, and used an uncured, nitrate free smoked sausage. SO GOOD! I wouldn’t change a thing!
I made this tonigh but I used chicken apple sausage. I added about 1/2 cup of cream at the end and used mozzarella cheese. It was delicious.
I love the smoky flavor of this recipe…delicious!
We just made this! We are a GF family for health not lifestyle. So we used GF pasta. Also we did add about 2/3 cup milk toward the end while wilting the spinach. Turned out beautiful! My 8 and 5 yr olds had seconds!! They love new things and this will go in our regular meals routine.
I made this tonight with a little tweaking for what I had on hand. It was sooooooo good!
I used 2 cans of diced tomatoes, 2 cans of rotel tomatoes/chilis, frozen spinach (added at the same time as the pasta), tortelini instead of pasta, and just whatever shredded cheese I had on hand (plus all the other ingredients you mentioned). (But I used frozen onions/peppers mix instead of cutting an onion).
So good!
Made this tonight – super delicious and easy. I subbed about half of the spinach for arugula and it worked beautifully.
I am planning to make this for dinner this week. Should the tomatoes be drained first to cut down on liquid? I am comparing this to your bacon, spinach pasta with is very close. I’ve read mixed reviews on this specific recipe regarding excessive liquid so should these be drained or broth reduced to 1 & 1/2 cups? Love your site I’ve made multiple dishes from here! Thanks!
I didn’t drain my tomatoes and it wasn’t liquidy for me. If you get to the end and there is too much liquid, simply let it simmer without a lid for a minute or so and the excess moisture will reduce. :)
I made this tonight with a jar of jalapeños instead of green chiles, it turned out super spicy and it was great! My boyfriend loved it too. Definitely going in the “make again” pile.
Made this tonight. Just used a can of diced tomatoes (no chilies) and used mozzarella because I didn’t have monterey jack. It was really good and I liked that it used so much spinach! I had only penne pasta and made the mistake of thinking 8oz of pasta would be a cup-that was wrong. It is actually about 3 cups of penne=8 oz. I wished that I was asked to measure the pasta before using the scale to measure a bunch of raw sausage. My husband wants it again but maybe with bowtie noodles next time. My toddler actually ate it!
Ah yes, always be careful about confusing fluid ounces with weight ounces. Eight fluid ounces equals one cup, but the volume of eight weight ounces (equivalent to 1/2 lb.) depends on the density of the ingredient. :)
This looks superb. I love your recipe. I just want to ask, instead of sausage is there any other substitute that can make this pasta more healthy?
I think your best bet is to use a smoked turkey sausage or a meatless smoked sausage alternative. The sausage really does account for a lot of flavor in this dish, so I wouldn’t suggest eliminating it or substituting with something very different.
10/10 would make again. Delicious!!!
LOVED this. Have made it numerous times.
I love this! My MIL requested that I make it every week. Thanks!
Found this recipe off of Pinterest. I tried to make a lot of healthy substitutions as much as possible (turkey sausage, whole wheat pasta, low-sodium broth, 2% cheeses instead of just one). It came out pretty good, but I do have to say, not very filling. I mean an hour later, I felt like I hadn’t really eaten anything!
I also thought broccoli florets and mushrooms would be good additions.
Excellent dinner. I used green beans instead of spinach and in stead of tomatoe sauce I used Newman’s Own sockarooni sauce. It is loaded with vegies and was great for this dinner.
Made this with 2 mild Italian sausages, a 540mL can of Aylmers spicy stewed tomatoes, the onion and chicken broth, 1/2 package of frozen spinach, 7 oz fibre enhanced bow tie pasta and probably more like 1 1/2 cups of cheese. My husband and I both really enjoyed it! I think I might reduce the chicken broth to 1 1/2 cups next time to make it a bit less liquidy, but even so, this is a really great recipe. Nice flavour combination!
I really recommend you stay away from beef sausage on this and use Conecuh brand. TRUST ME!!! Once you go there, you’ll never go back.
No, I’m not associated with them in any way, just a huge fan who cooks it all the time. That stuff will jump start your meals. I kid you not.
great comments! Unfortunately no one in this house liked it. I was disappointed because of all the great feedback. Hope I didn’t do something wrong. Seemed simple and straightforward. Oh well!
Hi from an Aussie cook…am preparing this for lunch, but use Kransky (or Chorizo) sausage and chicken thigh strips because the tasty sausage makes chicken come alive (and my husband isn’t a fan of chicken, while I love it!). This dish is real winter comfort food – tasty and satisfying, especially when scooped on to thin slices of crunchy toasted Toscana Italian Pizza Bruschettina
This was fantastic!!!! Had to make two substitutions because I did not want to go to the store. I used the Chihuahua queso cheese instead of Monterey and leeks instead of green onions. Yummy!!!!I got “permission” from everyone to add it to our rotation. So yummy!!! My kids said it tasted a little like spanish rice. Prob due to the tomatoes… Thanks so much!!!!
Wow! Super easy to make! While making this last night, unexpected company popped in. Not only was the dish a hit but it was more than enough for everyone. Thanks!
I have made this twice, and both times the family have LOVED it and begged me to make it again. Fussy teen girl loves the “fresh” taste, and cream loving hubby loves the creaminess (I’ll never tell him there’s no cream ;) ).
Absolutely as easy as can be for all the praise I received! Thanks!!!
Just to follow up, this has become a family stand-by and a firm favourite in the past 4 months. Sometimes substitute/add pickled peppers, pepperoni and whatever is on hand, but always follow the easy method. Love it on every level!
This is one of my favorite recipes to make for my family. It is so easy and tastes great. Thanks for sharing.
This was an easy, colorful and tasty dinner. I used Italian sausage, and Barilla Plus pasta. Thank you
Tried this for dinner tonight and it was amazing and only $10 for everything thanks for this awesome idea
I just made this for lunch (a GF version) and holy moley this is sooo good! The substitutes I used were coconut oil, quinoa pasta, 1/2 broth 1/2 water and a low fat mozzarella cheese. So delicious and easy to make!
Cooking this as I type. It’s so incredibly yummy,and easy to cook. Thank you for sharing! :)
As a 24y/o who is just learning how to cook foods other than ramen noodles I was so excited to try this. I used green bell peppers in substitution of the spinach, and oh my goodness, this did not disappoint! My entire house smelled amazing. Everyone kept saying how excellent the dish was.
Thank you so much for sharing, this recipe will definitely be a staple in my house!!
What kind of noodles are these?
It’s regular pasta, but I don’t remember the name of the shape… only that it translates to “flower”. :) They’re pretty, aren’t they?
Those look like egg-noodles.m
“I like to use meat sparingly and balance it out with other ingredients, like past and vegetables.”
An unintentionally poetic typo… so deep… :)
P.S. I cook this regularly. Love it! Thanks for the recipe and the site. I refer people here often.
Doh! Thanks for the heads up! ;)
Feel free to delete my comment now that you’ve fixed it. No offense taken. The editing nerd inside me just couldn’t resist. :)
Thanks for filling our bellies and wallets so well!
This was absurdly good. Generally when I make something and have it for lunches all week, I get sick of it no matter how good it is, even with the spinach not holding up well after reheating.
It was very easy, few ingredients, and I expect to make it again soon.
I made this tonight with what was on hand… Italian sausage and cheddar cheese. so i guess i am rating the technique more than the recipe. But this was an easy 5 stars.
I could not love this recipe more, my 2 and 4 year old girls ate seconds of spinach!
Our 8-year old ate spinach and didn’t even realize it! Thank you! I was out of green onions, so I substituted fresh cilantro instead and it was very tasty. Definitely making this recipe again.
I made this tonight for dinner, and it was a hit! I usually change up a recipe depending what I have on hand or to suit our preferences, but this recipe I actually followed exactly as you listed it. My family loved it, and they even went for seconds.
I love that it is a one-skillet meal and that the cheese was added last. I have a daughter who doesn’t like cheese so any recipe that let’s me easily make a no-cheese adaptation for her is a winner in my book. I will definitely be making this again!
Thank you for sharing!
Hey! Just wondering- do you think frozen spinach leaves will do well in thisbrevipe instead of fresh ones? What about canned spinach? Thanks!
The only issue with frozen spinach is that it can sometimes be broken into teeny tiny bits, which won’t look too nice (but the flavor should be fine!). I’ll be honest that I’ve never used canned spinach, so I’m not sure! :)
The only thing I would think is that it may make it to watery. I’d strain it really well with a cheesecloth
I made this for supper tonight and I added mushrooms and a little bit of cream cheese! It was delicious!
I made this for dinner tonite and doubled it. Luckily I only added one can of tomatoes. It was just perfectly spicy! I mixed the cheese through the dish and it made the sauce thick. Delicious!!
Made this for dinner tonight. It was delicious and my husband had 2 helpings. We don’t have a dishwasher, so any of your Crockpot or skillet meals are the most appealing to me. Anything to keep the dishes and mess to a minimum. I only had a spicy smoked sausage, so I used that. Added a bit of garlic, and it was a nice meal. I will make this again.
I may have to try this tomorrow..although I have to say the pricing is all wrong..I know that pricing may vary depending on what area you are from..but a 6 ounce package of shredded cheese in my area is about $5.99 and an 8 ounce package of smoked sausage is about $4.99. I buy fresh spinach all the time and one package that gives me about 3 and a half cups of spinach is $3.99 unless I catch it on sale..an 8 ounce box of pasta will cost me anywhere from $1.00-$1.50. This is not really a dish on a budget..but either way sounds great and I will have to try it! Thanks for posting it!
The liquid did not evaporate or thicken after adding pasta.. what did I do wrong
It sounds like you may need to turn up the heat just a tad. The heat level will depend on your particular stove top and the type of cookware used, but it needs to be simmering the whole time for the pasta to absorb the liquid. If the pasta softens up but there is still a considerable amount of liquid, let it simmer for a couple minutes without a lid for the moisture to evaporate.
I’m going to make this tonight for supper!! :) my family loves cheddar smokies sausages so I’ll be using those and I have cheese tortellini as the pasta! Will let you know how it turns out but I’m super excited!
This is a favorite in our house. We have a new baby coming and I’m trying to make a bunch of food ahead. Do you think this would ok if I made it and froze it? I’m not great with a freezer and I don’t want to mess up the deliciousness!
This one will probably freeze decently. It won’t be quite as awesome as it is just after you make it, but it should still be tasty.
I enjoyed it … tweaked it a little because I don’t like to use canned tomato – blanched and pealed some Roma tomatoes and roasted a jalapeno (wear gloves)
Very yummy! Even better than expected. Definitely a keeper!
This was amazing. I need to double it next time, my 2 teenage boys devoured it after practice. Leaving my husband and I to eat sandwiches
I had to come back and review this because it was excellent. I used rotels for the tomatoes and that made it a little spicy. Not kid friendly unless your child likes that sort of thing so to appease the 6 year old next time I would use just diced tomatoes and I am sure it would come out just as good. I was suprised the noodles came out so well it what seemed like just a little bit of liquid. This recipe is tasty, budget friendly, quick and has spinach so I just love it.. Thanks!
made this for dinner tonight, the ingredients i didnt have in my cupboard/freezer cost me about $13
i used the full $3 bag of spinach, for 12oz of noodles and the full pack of sausages. i could have saved with buying a different type of canned tomatoes, but i love the way it turned out. my only issue is something that was my fault, i added too much liquid and by the time it simmered out my noodles were done, but they overcooked once i added the spinach/extras :( oh well. now i know for next time :)
Wow this was a hit. I was thoroughly impressed and will make again and again. Next time I’ll try turkey sausage instead of smoked sausage because smoked sausage can be overwhelming imo. And when it comes to making a first time meal for my partner, I’ll whip this up. Thanks for posting.
For anyone doing Weight Watchers I calculated this at 9 P+ per serving with just a few modifications. I used turkey sausage and fat free cheese. It was a really good size serving for 9 points. Thanks for the great recipe!
Appreciating the persistence you put into your blog and detailed information you offer. It’s good to come across a blog every once in a while that isn’t the same out of date rehashed material. Great read! I’ve saved your site and I’m adding your RSS feeds to my Google account.
Found your recipe on Pinterest and I made it tonight; followed your recipe (except substituted turkey sausage for beef sausage) and it was delicious! Thank you for posting this!
I made this tonight. I doubled all the ingredients and used mozzarella and some cream cheese because I didn’t have monterey jack. It was good but very soupy! What did I do wrong?
I forgot to say that I used stewed tomatoes instead of diced tomatoes and I used rotini noodles.
You can let it simmer for a couple of minutes without the lid if it’s too liquidy. That will help some of it evaporate. Also, unfortunately mozzarella doesn’t melt into the liquid in the same way that the Monterey Jack will, so it won’t quite have the same texture.
This was good and really creamy even though it’s doesn’t use that much cheese. I used penne and Italian sausage.
Made this for dinner last night and it was delicious! My boyfriend couldn’t get enough of this stuff. I modified the recipe a bit… I didn’t use spinach but I added mushrooms, a scoop of cream cheese along with the Monterey jack cheese and it came out really creamy. I was worried it was going to turn out a little soupy as I read some of the previous comments but as soon as I added the cheese and the cream cheese it turned out perfectly. I also used Italian hot and sweet sausage which gave a really nice kick to it.
Great recipe and two thumbs up!
Made this earlier this week and my boyfriend and I loved it! Going grocery shopping today to make it again this weekend.
i made this tonight and I loved it. My mother who does not like pasta ate a full plate and called her sister to brag about how delicious her dinner was. I will be making more of this very soon.
I just made this and it was just SO good! Especially for a cool fall night. My 3 yr old and my husband both loved it. It turned out exactly right – not soupy, not dry. Added mushrooms for fun and a tbsp of cream cheese because I didn’t have enough cheddar jack. So easy and so delicious, thank you!!!
Made this twice. Best sausage pasta ever. Neice asked if I bought it from a restaurant.
Making again for tonight dinner. Thank you so much for the blog.
This looks wonderful, a dish I am sure my husband will love. I want to make this next week but I have to ask, what kind of pasta did you use in this dish? Thanks for sharing this recipe!
I forgot what the Italian name for the shape is, but on the package it calls them “flowers”. They’re really great! I think it’s Delallo brand http://www.delallo.com/
Egg Noodles! Cheap and works great
This was delicious! And we got WAY more than four servings out of it.
I cannot get enough of this pasta. I couldn’t really find monterrey jack for a reasonable price, so I stirred a bit of cream cheese into the pasta and topped it with some other cheese. My brother and boyfriend absolutely loved it!
Well I’m only 21 and I love on my own in NM (my mom is THE BEST cook but she’s all the way in OH) so I’ve been trying to cook at home more instead of eating out all the time. I made this today for me and my boyfriend and we both ate 2 helpings to ourselves, very, very, good! Even though it was my first time ever cooking something like this it came out perfect, not too soupy! Thanks so much for this!
I made this because it looked really easy and it was extemely simple. My kids ate it up I didn’t even get to eat it.
This dish is fabulous! My husband went back for 3rds….he’s never had thirds before! So happy I found your blog :)
Def ate more of this than I needed to! It was so good! Probably the best sausage pasta Iv’e ever made. I made some changes to the recipe. I used hot italian sausage because my boyfriend really like that and I doubled up on the chicken broth and pasta. I was making it for the 2 of us using rigatoni and i thought that the 8 oz of pasta wouldn’t be enough so i doubled up on the liquid but still used one can of the chili tomatoes. Also the spinach I bough in the beginning of the week was bad now (Fri) lol. So there was no spinach but the meal turned out fantastic. I also added a splash of milk for some richness but would have been just as good without it. My boyfriend love 3 things in a pasta dish; sausage, spicy sauce and cheese. This was the perfect combo of all 3. Also i used cheddar cheese instead of the jack.. Thx Beth!
This is tasty :) Ours was a tad bit soupy too but I enjoyed that aspect of it, actually. Well it was probably because I added another 1/2 cup of water to make sure all of my pasta was covered. We used farfalle pasta. Hubbs said to keep this one on our rotation.
I loved this! I used turkey smoked sausage and since I didn’t have a can of Rotel tomatoes, I used a can for diced tomatoes and a can of chopped green chiles. I also didn’t have any spinach so, I omitted it. Also, instead of monteray cheese, I used a block do cream cheese. I know… Lots of calories and fat but, the sausage was turkey :). This is definitely a keeper in my recipe box.
Hi Beth! Just made this, eating it now. It’s great! The only problem is that I have a lot of liquid left in the pot, which has made the whole meal a little soupy. Any thoughts on what I did wrong?
I would try simmering it a bit longer, and if needed simmer for a minute or two without the lid. Hopefully that helps!
I absolutely loved this recipe! Although I substituted the smoked sausage for italian sausage (after making it with the smoked sausage first) and liked it with the italian sausage so much better! Excellent recipe overall though!
I accidentally bought a bag of spinach/kale mix instead of spinach. Having never had kale before I was kinda worried, but it turned out amazing. My autistic son (who has a list of acceptable foods you can count on both hands, generally) liked the smell, and wanted to try it. He ate it all up! I never in a million years thought I’d get spinach into that boy, thanks Beth!
That’s amazing!! I’m so glad he liked it! :D
This was a great easy dinner for our active on the go family. I did change out and use the Butterball Smoked Turkey Sausage (we don’t eat much beef in our house) there was no grease to drain off and I think the flavor was still great. I couldn’t find a 14.5 ounce can of tomatoes so I ended up using half of a 28 oz can (the other half we used for chili yesterday).
Bottom line…this is a “Do Over” in our house. LOVED IT
this was even better than I thought it would be!!! I had to have a second helping. Absolutely delish and I can’t wait to make it again!! Thanks so much for this awesome recipe!!
I’m going to make this for dinner tonight – looks absolutely delish!! I am going to use chicken sausage and add some bell peppers and broccoli. I’ll report back but I know it will be super yummy!!
I thought this was great! Will definitely be putting this in my regular recipes. Thanks!
This recipe was disappointing. It wasn’t creamy at all and the chicken broth as a substitute for the heavy cream made it taste disgusting. It was like pasta that was trying to be soup. Crappy soup. The though of this recipe makes me want to vomit. I will never eat it again.
Thanks for posting. I love that this recipe is so easy to customize. I 1 1/2’d it for my family of 6 and there will be leftovers for lunch tomorrow. I followed the directions and used Andouille smoked sausage (got it on sale this week) and it was good. After I finished though I realized it was a bit too spicy for my young children and knew they wouldn’t eat it so I mixed half a block of cream cheese in there to tone down the spiciness and it worked wonderfully. I also nixed the spinach in the pasta because my 4 year old would have a fit unless I picked it all out, so I served a nice salad on the side. Everybody ate it so I guess it’s a keeper :)
Just made this for dinner. Very good, only problem was I had a lot of liquid left in the pan. Maybe I need to add more spinach? Will def make again!
I made this the other night and it’s delicious and easy! I did however add lots of spices to it to give it more flavour. Thanks for the recipe! My boyfriend and I loved it!
I’ve made the original and it’s always a crowd pleaser.
This was absolutely Delish! My 6 year old even gobbled it up:)
Could you substitute feta for the Monterey Jack?
You could, but it wouldn’t be quite as creamy and probably much saltier. The way that Monterrey melts is what makes it so deliciously creamy. :)
I happened upon this website today. I was inspired to make this dish. WE LOVE IT!! I especially like how pretty it turned out. I enjoyed taking a pic and tooting my own horn on fb! I will definitely make this again and I’ll be trying other recipes as well.
I have made this dish at least once to twice a month in the past year. Each time, I am reminded how ridiculously good it is. It is a good way to use up vegetables, too, so mine often turns into a pasta primavera/sausage dish. Thanks!
I made this tonight, following the recipe completely as directed with no substitutions or alterations. I have to say this was so good. I loved how creamy the shredded monterrey jack cheese made it and how the chilies in the tomatoes gave it just a little kick without overpowering it with too much spice. My seven year old son even loved it and he can be a little picky. This is a keeper and I will definitely be making it again!
Just finished making this and it’s absolutely delicious! I followed the recipe almost to T, only thing I didn’t do was add green onion because I didn’t have any on hand, but it tastes great even without it. Adding this to my weekly meal lineup! Thanks so much for sharing!
Just got done eating this! It was very delicious and easy! My boyfriend loved it and will be making it for his coworkers at the firehouse next time he cooks! Thanks for sharing!
I am SO inspired! Cooking has been a chore for me for a long time. I am determined to find simple, basic cooking methods and recipes. Thank you for showing how fun and easy cooking can be, even on a budget!
I LOVE this recipe. It’s so easy to make and it’s really delicious. Plus, it’s really versatile and works with whatever you have in the kitchen.
Thanks for posting!
AWESOME! I cooked this tonight, and it was spectacular. I doubled the recipe (I had a sneaking suspicion that it would be good), and added in mushrooms.
My husband and I was talking, and next time I think we’ll try prosciutto & chicken in it.
Amazing even my kids liked it very yummy
Just made this. Very successful. All i had to add was 2 spices, creole seasoning, and italian seasoning. It was also inexpensive as promised! PEOPLE IF YOU ARE READING THIS, GIVE IT A TRY! You did a wonderful Job girl!
Just read that someone named coma commented and the dish and made it with the turkey kielbasa so I’m sure it will be fine…
So excited to make this recipe tonight and just headedout to the store and couldn’t find any all beef smoked sausage, so They sold me smoked turkey kielbasa, do u think the flavor of this meat will suit the dish?
Thanks for the awesome recipe; it was quite easy to make a double batch in a larger pot! Since I’m on an even tighter budget/abroad where there is no such thing as smoked sausage, I just used cheap hot dogs, but you could barely even tell. And since cheese is likewise crazy here, I used a package of cream cheese. Let me tell you: amazing.
I think I’ll try this using rice instead of noodles (had pasta last night). Has anyone tried that with this recipe?
This is soooo good, I could hardly keep from eating it all in one day!
I feel so efficient cooking your recipes, I’m saving a ton of money and I’ve only just started!
Thanks for setting the example.
:D
Just made this recipe for dinner tonight and it was delicious!! I added a couple cloves of garlic cloves with the onion, and a few shakes of ground red pepper and Italian seasoning. It added a good kick! My hubby loved it and had two helpings!! I did have to cook it for another 5 minutes with out the lid so the broth could cook down a little more. Will be making this again!! :)
I just got a new croc pot and I am excited to use it. Do you think if I added more broth and tomatoes I could do it in the croc pot? Just put it on low and let it simmer?
Well, it definitely won’t be the same because you won’t get the browning of the meat the way you do in the skillet, which is responsible for a lot of the flavor. Also, pasta in the crock pot tends to have a much softer texture. BUT, that aside, you might still really like it? I’ve never tried a dish like this in the slow cooker, though, so those are just my speculations.
I made this recipe (but spicier) last night. Thanks for sharing it. Delish!
I substituted the sausage for a spicy one that wasn’t precooked (surprise!) so I had to cook it first. I also subbed the cheese for a Monterey with Jalapenos. What a kick –
One question, how exactly do I freeze individual portions? Any rules or tips? Is it too late to do it tonight with what I’ve got left?
For dishes like this, you can simply portion them out into resealable, freezer-safe containers (I just use those Glad or Ziploc containers) and freeze them. I like to refrigerate them first, then transfer to the freezer once cold. So, I often don’t freeze them until a day or so later.
So I made this, and I can’t stop eating it. I found it three weeks ago, and it’s been requested every week.
I do use kielbasa or turkey sausage instead of regular sausage, and also like to substitute kale as well!
So simple, and delicious.
OH! And one last change, I add some Tony Chacher’s cajun seasoning, because I pretty much don’t eat anything without it! :)
Thanks for the great recipe!
One last add on, I swear, I don’t dice the onion just slice it up. :)
I made this last night…delicious! I would almost do it without cheese next time…I used colby jack since I had it on hand and I don’t know if it was the flavor of the particular cheese, but it tasted better without it! I used mini farfalle pasta…very cute looking and cooked up quickly!
I just made that pasta dish from the Kevin and Amanda site last week! How funny that I should end up on ur site THIS week. At any rate, I can’t wait to try ur version with spinach cuz the other version was yummy and I just know this one will be equally yummy too! Thanks for posting this!
Tried this last night…absolutely delicious! Thank you so much, Beth! You have changed my world :-)
Delicious and easy! Added even more spinach.
Unfortunately, the first time I tried this one I forgot to drain the sausage fat and it ended up very greasy. The second attempt was much better, this one is a keeper!
Live in CT and I shop at Aldi. Cost me about $7.
Loved this dinner! I made it tonight,my hubby and I loved it! Raved about it on Instagram! Gave your amazing blog!
xoxo Carly
i made this wednesday night for dinner. i had a 12oz bag of noodles so i “eyeballed” what i thought would be 8oz. i clearly over-shot it so i added a 1 more cup of broth and it was perfect. thanks for the recipe!! my husband went on and on about it :-)
Made this tonight for dinner. It was absolutely delicious!! Zero changes. Thanks for sharing!
oh my goodness, this pasta dish is amazing. I’ve shared it with everyone who will listen. I’ve just recently been getting into cooking, and I love how easy you make the recipes. This was soooooo delicious, and not a lot of trouble (or money) either! Thanks!
Made this tonight and it was delicious! Thanks for the awesome recipe!
I made this last week and it was delicious. I am making it again tonight. I used turkey sausage by ekrich with half the fat. And it was so good. There was no taste difference and i added extra cheese for extra creaminess.
Loved this one-dish stovetop “casserole”–fast, easy and tasty. This family of four had NO leftovers. Made it with turkey kielbasa, penne pasta, fresh cherry tomatoes (left over from something else) and a TB of canned green chilies (also left over from another recipe). Used about 2 1/2 cups broth because I wasn’t using canned tomatoes. When I make it again, I am going to try to find smoked Monterey Jack for a bit more flavor. Anonymous, where do you live that this cost $17?! Clare
Since we had sausage earlier this week, I subsituted chicken. The dish was very creamy, as stated, however, it was VERY spicy. I would recommend NOT using the tomatoes with chilis and just use plain diced or fresh tomatoes. We ate as a family and even my 2yr old said “Spicy Mommy.” I will definitely do this dish again with a few minor adjustments.
Loved it! We used turkey sausage, and next time I may sub one of the cups of broth for water-even with reduced sodium broth, there’s a lot of sodium. I added too much pasta the first time so I had to add a little water.
Loved it! We used turkey sausage, and next time I may sub one of the cups of broth for water-even with reduced sodium broth, there’s a lot of sodium. I added too much pasta the first time so I had to add a little water.
I made this recipe exactly as is. The total price for me was $17. Not bad but it didn’t have any flavor so it was hard to eat without getting bored of it quickly. Needs more spices.
Wow! This was great and so easy! I followed the recipe exactly, only substituting minced onion for fresh because my husband has a weird thing about onion texture. I also used egg noodles because I thought that’s what was in the picture. They turned out really well and helped soaked up all the delicious broth. I will definitely be making this one again! Love your budget friendly recipes!
My dad recently got a sausage maker and he had lots of fun with it…he ended up with 45 sausages or something, so he gave me a big bag to keep in my freezer at school! Can’t wait to use them for this yummy-looking recipe :)
Tonight was my first night cooking in a kitchen that we’ve been remodeling since beginning of December (SO SICK of microwaveable dinners, ramen, and takeout!, and I’ve had this on my mind since you posted the recipe. It was SO good and totally lived up to my expectations. What a great way to break in my new kitchen! I just love your blog, it’s my go to when I’m meal planning!
We made this and it was a huge hit. I was massively surprised that I had everything I needed (within reason) in my pantry. I subbed andouille sausage for smoked and used elbow noodles (since I have many boxes of it) but it was massively popular. And that is saying something, considering my picky 3 and 5 year old kids!
Delish! It was way spicier than expected, but in a good way! Made it for friends and they all flipped!
Holy crapoly this was delicious! I did use egg noodles, and it was fine.
Mandy – Yep, pepper jack is just monterrey jack with hot peppers added, so that will still work fine. :)
Emile – It’s actually regular pasta (not egg pasta), but it’s these cool shapes called flowers (or the Italian word for flowers, anyway). I bet egg noodles would work well too, though!
Beth, can I ask what kind of pasta you used in this recipe? It looks like plain ol’ egg noodles, but I didn’t want to make assumptions, especially if that’s not the case!
this looks absolutely fabulous. might have to give it a try (using a veg sausage instead…lightlife makes a smoked sausage variety!). do you think pepperjack would melt the same? i love a lot of eat in my food! ;)
I used this recipe as a starting point to create a yummy dish using items that I bought with doubled coupons. Sometimes I get new products for free after coupons, not always sure how to use it. I used half a pack of chipotle chicken sausage (entire package $1.49 after coupons), penne (25¢ for one pound box), and Campbell’s Skillet Sauce Fire Roasted Tomato (free) with a sprinkle of cheddar cheese on top ($2 for one pound bag). It was easy, yummy, fast and very cheap.. thank you!
Made this tonight and it was very tasty! I substituted a different type of pasta (only one I had in house), some Italian sausage from local market and used colby-jack cheese. I’ll definitely add this to the recipe box.
Oh and I used whole wheat pasta and it turned out just fine.
This was wonderful! I made it for my family of five. Everyone loved it, including my extremely picky 4 year old. I used elbow noodles so I could convince him it was “just like” mac and cheese :)
this was bomb-tastic. i went a little crazy on the cheese and spinach, but worth it.
Anonymous – Not a silly question at all! I think it will pretty much work the same. Like you said, it may take a couple extra minutes of simmering, but not a huge difference. Also, just keep an eye on it and add a little extra water if it gets dry. You should stir a few times while it simmers anyway, so if it starts to dry up just add a little water.
This may sound silly, but will whole wheat pasta work the same way as far as liquid ingredients go? I’m assuming it may cook a bit longer than with regular pasta. I have tons of whole wheat penne and I’m looking for creative ways to use it! This recipe looks delicious!
GET IN MY BELLY!!!! Making this tonight! :)
Goethe Girl – I actually just cook for myself. :) I eat the leftovers throughout the week, and sometimes freeze about half as individual portions. That way, I have a freezer full of different single serving portions of recipes, so if I get sick of whatever I’m eating that week, I can just grab something different out of the freezer. In general my portions are pretty small, so keep that in mind when I list servings per recipe. Although, for this one I found that I actually got closer to six servings than the four that I originally anticipated.
I am a novice cook and have been reading your blog for about a month now. I am now ready to jump in and try this recipe. It is hard for me to tell from your recipes, however, whether you are making meals for one person, with leftovers, or would you say that your recipes are for more than one person? The commenters suggest the recipe is good for a family dinner, but I am recently widowed and cooking, for the most part, for myself.
I love you, I love you, I love you!
Thanks for this blog. It helps me make family-friendly, budget-friendly meals all the time. You’re awesome!
I will make this tonight and I’m replacing the fresh spinach by frozen spinach leaves, plus I’ll be adding carrots and frozen peas for some veggies!
This looks sooo great! Yum
This looks sooo delish!
STH – Thanks for how you modified that! I am going to have to try that with this recipe!
Made this last night with a few modifications to fit better into our diabetic diet–used about 3/4 of a turkey kielbasa, added a chopped green pepper and about 2 cups of chopped eggplant, and used whole wheat egg noodles for the pasta. I didn’t have Monterey Jack, so I used half Mozzarella and half low-fat cheddar. We really liked it; my SO had two servings and asked me if he could take the leftovers for lunch Monday, so I’d call that a hit! Thanks for this–I really appreciated how quick it was as I’d just taken an exam that afternoon and needed something easy to whip up fast.
Made this with Tofurky Italian sausage and frozen spinach and it was awesome. Added another 1/2 cup of water at the end because the pasta hadn’t cooked all the way.
Good idea for a recipe! I have some sausages in the fridge I need to use up so will probably make this tomorrow!
Hi Beth! THANK YOU for this recipe! We just finished dinner, and WOW was this dish awesome! LOVED by adults and young children. This is going into my dinner rotation. The only change I made was I used 12 oz of an all natural chicken sausage (I was concerned about nitrites and msg). It was also really PRETTY!–my husband said that it looked just like your pictures. We generally eat clean, and this qualified as a clean meal! Beth, I have a ton of cookbooks, but I really enjoy your recipes and find myself inspired by blogs like yours. Also, I love your step-by-step photos! Great blog and yummy recipes!
Thanks for answering and I agree! 1.5-2 cups of chopped tomatoes. The canned tomatoes come with quite a bit of juice, though, so you may want to add a half cup of water or so to make up for the lost moisture… but that might not be needed. Just see if the pasta cooks through without the skillet drying up first.
Tiff:
A can of tomatoes is about 1.5 cups, so either one big tomato or two medium should do it. Use the chillies to taste, I’d say 3-4.
I’d like to make this with fresh tomatoes and green chilies – how many would I need to use? (I don’t know what 14.5 oz translates to :P)
PS I love you Beth. Never having cooked before in my life, I was dying as a new college graduate until I ran across your blog!
I’ve adjusted this for vegetarians, used some soy sausage and vegetable broth. For some reason mine didn’t simmer down incredibly well so next time I’d use one cup of broth instead of two. I’m also not the biggest onion fan in the world so I used half an onion. Also used cheddar instead of monterey jack and mixed greens instead of spinach (it’s what I had!). Still delicious!! Thanks for the recipe :)
Kess – Yes, frozen spinach would work, although if it’s chopped frozen spinach it will be in tiny bits instead of nice big leaves. It will taste just fine, though.
Goethe Girl – Cheddar would be best. Parmesan won’t melt in as nicely, although it would probably still taste great!
Made this last night! I used raw deli sausage and fresh tomatoes, spinach, and bell peppers, and it was very good! I used twice the amount of pasta, and therefore twice the amount of cheese, and it ended up being extremely cheesy, probably too much. I think in the future I would maybe add cream and use much less cheese.
Love your blog! I’ve made ~15 recipes of yours so far!
I just freakin love one pots recipes!
Spinach cooks down to next to nothing. Don’t worry the big bag will reduce in volume 90%.
Jack is just young cheddar
This looks sooo goood!!!
Can you do Parmesan or Cheddar instead of Monterey Jack?
Do you think you could use frozen spinach if you thawed it a bit first? I’ve got this huge bag of frozen spinach that I’m not quite sure what to do with (bought it on a whim as I’m trying to get more veggies into my diet).
Made this last night and it was quite a hit! Added garbanzo beans just before adding the pasta and they absorbed all the tomatoey sausagey yummyness! So good!
Same thing as Dunja here, glad to know I can use cheddar! This recipe looks too delicious not to give it a try! =]
PS.: I’ve been following your blog for a while now, through Bloglovin’. Couldn’t help leaving a comment on this post!
Dunja – Yes, cheddar melts in a similar way to monterrey jack and the flavor goes well with the other ingredients. I hope you like it!
I’ve never heard of Monterrey Jack cheese before and doubt it will be obtainable here in Food Desert Germany. Is Cheddar a good substitute? That would mean I could make this recipe tomorrow! So excited!
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Geesh this recipe will kill you? Dramatic much?
It looks delicious! I am going to but this dish on next weeks dinner menu! I use lots of caned foods including tomatoes and so have my past generations! Were pretty healthy! Thanks for sharing all your amazing recipes!
Xoxo Carly
I tried this recipe tonight and it was great! We did diced tomatoes with chipotle peppers and in really gave the dish a nice kick! I also was lucky enough to get some local smoked sausage which was excellent. The only cheese I had in the house was cheddar, but it was still great.
I love the addition of spinach for color!
Isn’t Better than Bouillon great!?
YES! It’s the best, I use the reduced sodium, will never buy broth from the can or bullion again.
I am just loving your recipes! I have made dragon noodles twice in a week! This looks AMAZING and delicious! New fav. food blog. EVER!!!!!!!!!!!!
@Jacob – It’s very difficult to find tomatoes in glass containers in my area, namely a suburb in the southeast United States. That said, several organic canned food providers do have BPA-free can liners in their tomatoes so it may be worth taking a look in the organic aisle if you’re in my situation and don’t mind a non-budget byte now and then. ;)
Mmm, I never know what to do with that sausage when I get it. I usually cook it in the skillet with potatoes and it is so heavy and salty. I can’t wait to try this!!
Looks yummy!
As delicious as that looks, this recipe as is will kill you. Cans are lined with dangerous chemicals such as bisphenol-A, which causes heart disease, diabetes, obesity, and can also alter your sperm and eggs. The acidity of tomatoes causes this chemical to leech into the tomatoes themselves, which you then ingest. Spend a little bit extra to get tomatoes in glass containers. You’ll save hundreds of thousands of dollars in medical expenses and invaluable time of prolonged life. Other than that, can’t wait to try the recipe!
That’s OK – I’m from Canada, so all those medical costs will be covered!
@Jacob – Seriously, this is what you end up commenting on?
If I wanted a medical rundown of what could possibly kill me, I’d pick up a newspaper.
Okay…A real wacko
Couldn’t of said it better!