This Penne Pasta with Sausage and Greens one of my favorite “sweep the kitchen” recipes. It’s a no brainer pasta and sauce dish with a little Italian sausage and whatever frozen greens I happen to have on hand (I “sweep the kitchen” and use the leftovers). I sprinkled a little feta over top of the pasta for an extra kick and that was all I needed to make a super tasty and filling dish that kept me running all week. I like simple!
What Greens Can I Use?
I actually planned to make this Penne Pasta with Sausage and just broccoli, but then realized that I had far less broccoli left over from week one of the SNAP challenge than I thought, so I added in a little of my leftover spinach as well. This recipe would also be really good with some sautéed zucchini if you don’t have spinach or broccoli, or happen to have a glut of zucchini from your garden. It’s really hard to go wrong with pasta and sauce, am I right?
Sausage is Key
The Italian sausage really added a lot of flavor to the pasta as well. Italian sausage is seasoned with a ton of herbs and spices, and as the pasta sits in the refrigerator, all of those glorious herbs infuse out into the entire dish. I used hot Italian sausage, but you could also use sweet or mild Italian sausage instead.
Can I Make it Vegetarian?
As mentioned, the Italian sausage adds a LOT of flavor to this dish, so if you do want to make it vegetarian I suggest using a vegetarian Italian sausage substitute, or adding a lot of extra Italian seasoning to make up for the seasoning that is in the sausage.
Is This Penne Freezer Friendly?
Yes indeed! That’s one of the best things about this pasta dish. If it’s more than what you’ll be able to consume in 4-5 days, go ahead and freeze half the batch for later. I suggest dividing the pot into single portions just after cooking, then once all the portions are cooled, transfer half to the freezer. That way you can quickly grab and reheat one at a time (microwave) whenever needed.
So here it is… The SNAP Challenge week three main menu item, Penne Pasta with Sausage and Greens!
Penne Pasta with Sausage and Greens
Servings 7 1.5 cups eachIngredients
- 12 oz. penne pasta ($1.49)
- 1 Tbsp olive oil ($0.16)
- 3 links Italian sausage (about 12 oz.) ($2.99)
- 2 cloves garlic ($0.16)
- 1 yellow onion ($0.42)
- 1 28oz. can crushed tomatoes ($1.39)
- 1 6oz. can tomato paste ($0.56)
- 1 tsp dried basil ($0.10)
- 3/4 tsp salt ($0.05)
- Freshly cracked black pepper ($0.05)
- 1/2 Tbsp brown sugar ($0.02)
- 1/4 lb. frozen broccoli ($0.47)
- 1/4 lb. frozen spinach ($0.47)
- 2 oz. feta ($0.87)
Instructions
- Cook the pasta according to the package directions (boil for 7-10 minutes, or until al dente). Drain the pasta in a colander.
- While the pasta is cooking, add the sausage links to a large pot along with one tablespoon of olive oil. Cook the sausage over medium heat for about five minutes, or until they are slightly browned and firm enough to slice.
- While the sausage is cooking, mince the garlic and dice the onion. Remove the sausage from the pot and add the onion and garlic in its place. Sauté the onion and garlic in the pot for 2-3 minutes, allowing the moisture to dissolve the brown bits from the bottom of the pot. Meanwhile, slice the sausage into medallions. Once the onions are soft and transparent, add the sliced sausage back to the pot and cook for about 5 minutes more, or until the sausage is cooked through.
- Add the can of crushed tomatoes, tomato paste, basil, salt, pepper, and brown sugar to the pot. Stir until the tomato paste is evenly combined with the tomato sauce.
- Add the frozen broccoli and spinach to the pot, stir to combine, and allow to heat through, stirring occasionally. By this time the pasta should be fully cooked and drained. Add the drained pasta to the pot and stir to combine. Crumble the feta into the pot, stir to combine, then serve.
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Notes
Nutrition
How to Make Penne Pasta with Sausage – Step by Step Photos
Begin by cooking 12oz. penne pasta according to the package directions. While the pasta is cooking, begin the sausage and sauce. Brown 3 links, or about 12 oz. Italian sausage in a pot with 1 Tbsp olive oil over medium heat. You only need to cook them for about five minutes, or until they’re firm enough to slice. They will cook more later. If your sausage is not in links, simply brown it and break it up into pieces as you go.
While the sausage is browning, dice one onion and mince two cloves of garlic.
Remove the sausage to a cutting board, and add the diced onion and minced garlic to the pot in its place. Sauté the onion and garlic while you slice the sausage into medallions.
The moisture from the onion will dissolve the delicious browned bits off the bottom of the pot as they sauté. Add the sliced sausage back to the pot, and continue to sauté until the sausage medallions are cooked through (about 5 more minutes).
Next, add a 28oz. can of crushed tomatoes, a 6oz. can of tomato paste, 1 tsp dried basil, 1/2 Tbsp brown sugar, 3/4 tsp salt, and some freshly cracked pepper. Stir until these ingredients are combined and allow them to continue to heat through, stirring often. At this point the pasta is probably finished boiling as well, so you can drain it in a colander until you’re ready to add it to the pot.
Once the sauce is heated through, add 1/4 lb. frozen broccoli florets and 1/4 lb. frozen spinach to the pot. This part is flexible too, so you can just estimate 1/4 of a one pound bag of each of the frozen vegetables. Stir and allow the sauce and vegetables to heat through again.
Once the vegetables have heated through, add the cooked and drained pasta, and stir to combine.
Finally, add 2 oz. crumbled feta, then stir to combine again.
And there you have it! One big ol’ pot of inexpensive deliciousness! Or you can call it Penne Pasta with Sausage and Greens. ;)
Every time I’ve eaten this this week, I’ve wanted a second helping. Not because I’m still hungry, but because it was so tasty and so delicious! The Italian sausage really makes the dish.
Sorry if this seems a simple question – Do you think diced tomatoes or a can of tomato sauce would work instead of crushed tomatoes? It’s what I have on hand.
Tomato sauce would probably be best. I think diced tomatoes would be too chunky to create the sauce. :)
I only had a tube of tomato puree so used a glob (no more no less) of that instead of a jar of tomato paste. Also added more onion and a bit of chopped chorizo with skinless sausages instead of the italian sausages. Surprisingly low calorie when portioned out, I ate this for the whole week and never got bored. Topped with cayenne, salt and pepper. Absolutely brilliant :)
Holy. Cow. The SNAP Challenge Penne Pasta with Sausage and Greens is so freaking good that this recipe should be illegal!! I used hot Italian sausage instead of mild, because the supermarket was out of it. I used jarred spaghetti sauce instead of using canned crushed tomatoes and canned tomato sauce, since I was impatient and famished. I was being so greedy that I came back for seconds, even though I’m determined to make the left overs stretch for the next few days. I have another favorite recipe that’s worth making again very soon. Thank you, Beth!!! :-)
This recipe got me into cooking – thank you!!
I came home exhausted last night and used this post for inspiration. I pulled a few links of sausage out of the freezer and threw them straight into the pan. Once they were defrosted enough, I sliced them and threw in some mushrooms in the pot (forgot about throwing in the diced onion and green pepper I had sitting fridge). Once that was done, I threw in a jar of pasta sauce I had stashed away and the cooked noodles and topped with some feta. It was delicious! From start to finish it took less than 20 minutes, cost about $5, and required very minimal effort. The pizza shop that was calling my name would have been $20, 45 minutes, and no leftovers. Thanks for all that you do!
Do you think this would work with kielbasa?
Yes, that would be delicious. :)
I am making this tonight for dinner.
Made this tonight with a few variations and it was great. I used frozen spinach– half a bag. I also used smaller macaroni style pasta and jarred sauce. It turned out very yummy. Thanks.
Way too sweet for my taste. Good base but needs some tweaks
Just tried this tonight- turned out great! Really easy, inexpensive, and versatile. Used polska kielbasa sausage tonight, will probably try another kind next time. Thanks for a great recipe!
Made this tonight but with some added mushrooms and red pepper flakes. Yum!!!
This is so good–I have made it several times. I use fresh spinach and italian chicken sausage.
I had this hanging around in my recipe folder in my emails, meaning to try it but hadn’t ever got round to it until last night – oh holy yum! I made it with sweet chilli sausages and mixed herbs instead of basil but it was so good I had to stop myself going back for seconds. Am kicking myself for not trying this earlier…
After coming back to make this dish (again!), I realized I hadn’t thanked you for sharing this amazing recipe. It has saved so many weeknights at our house! My husband asks for it almost weekly. Thank you again!
This has turned out to be the recipe I make the most from Budget Bytes.
I skip the spinach but put in almost an entire 1 lb bag of broccoli. I also skip the feta – don’t really need it! I increase the garlic and add some thyme, too.
Looks so good! I want to make it but do I have to use frozen veggies?
Nope, you can use fresh if you prefer. :)
If I use fresh veg, would you recommend sauteing them a bit first (along with the sausage and onion, before I add the tomatoes or throwing them into the sauce before the pasta) or still just toss them in at the end? I’m thinking it would be best to cook them down a bit, but curious what your thoughts are. Fresh broccoli, yes, but mushrooms, maybe not?
I think you’re right, I’d sauté them down a bit first. I’d do the mushrooms with the sausage and onion, but I’d do the broccoli later as it tends to get mushy if cooked too long.