Here’s to quick & delicious dinners! This Spicy Sausage and Broccoli Pasta is another dish that can be whipped up in practically the same amount of time that it takes to boil the pasta. You gotta love that!
I wanted to buy some spicy Italian sausage for this recipe, by my local grocery store only had sweet Italian sausage. Guess what? It was still delicious! And, if you’re adventurous, you could even try some smoked sausage. Yes ma’am!
I also bought some fancy-schmancy smoked gouda to go on the pasta because I thought the creamy, smokey cheese would be a nice contrast to the spicy red pepper… and it was! Because the cheese was so expensive, I decided to mix it with a less expensive blend of generic “Italian blend shredded cheese.” In the end, I didn’t end up needing much cheese at all, so I could have used straight gouda and still not broken the bank. If you don’t want to spring for the fancy smoked gouda, just the shredded Italian blend or some parmesan would have been great on here. You don’t need a lot, just a light sprinkle to balance the flavors and textures.
I chose to use frozen broccoli florets because they’re already blanched prior to freezing. This makes the cooking processes much faster. Plus, you can buy it and stash it in the freezer until you’re ready to use it without worry that it will get wilty and moldy like it does in the bottom of your refrigerator!
Spicy Sausage and Broccoli Pasta
Spicy Sausage and Broccoli Pasta
Servings 8Ingredients
- 2 Tbsp olive oil ($0.24)
- 4 cloves garlic ($0.28)
- 1/2 tsp crushed red pepper ($0.03)
- 1/2 lb. Italian sausage ($2.75)
- 1 lb. frozen broccoli florets ($1.63)
- 1 lb. bow tie pasta ($1.29)
- 2 oz. 1/2 cup smoked gouda ($1.47)
- 2 oz. 1/2 cup shredded Italian cheese ($0.63)
- to taste salt & pepper ($0.05)
Instructions
- Bring a large pot of water to a boil and cook the pasta according to the package directions (boil for 7-10 minutes or until al dente). Drain in a colander.
- While the pasta is cooking, begin the rest of the dish. Mince the garlic. Heat 2 Tbsp of olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the minced garlic and saute for 1-2 minutes. Add the red pepper flakes and saute for 1 minute more.
- Squeeze the Italian sausage out of the casing into the skillet. Break it up with a spatula as it cooks. Saute until cooked through. Add the broccoli (thaw before hand) to the skillet and saute for 3-5 minutes or just until the broccoli is tender. Turn off the burner to prevent the broccoli from over cooking (it will begin to turn an olive green color if it overcooks).
- When the pasta is cooked and drained, add it to the skillet with the sausage and broccoli. Stir to coat it in the garlic and red pepper infused oil. Sprinkle with salt and freshly cracked pepper to taste. Sprinkle with shredded cheese, stir, and serve warm!
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Nutrition
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Step By Step Photos
Begin by boiling the water to cook the pasta. By the time the water reaches a boil and the pasta is cooked, you’ll probably have the rest of the dish ready and waiting for the pasta to be stirred in! I like bowties for this recipe because the shape adds great texture to the dish.
While you’re waiting for the water to boil and the pasta to cook, mince the garlic. Add it to a large skillet with the olive oil. Cook over medium heat for 1-2 minutes.
Add the crushed red pepper flakes and cook for about a minute more. Be careful not to burn the red pepper flakes. If they begin to brown, turn the heat down a touch. The olive oil is now getting infused with the flavors of the red pepper and garlic – yum!
This is the sausage that I used. Like I said, you could use hot Italian sausage, or even smoked sausage if you like. I only used half of this one pound package and froze the rest for another recipe later.
Squeeze the sausage out of the casing into the skillet (or slice it – your choice) and cook until done all the way through. The seasoning in the sausage will add further flavor to the oil in the pan, which ultimately acts as a sauce on the pasta and broccoli.
Add the broccoli to the skillet. The broccoli should be at least half way thawed or else it will add to your cooking time. I also ended up cutting the pieces a bit smaller. Cook the broccoli just until it is fork tender and then turn the burner off.
By this time the pasta is probably cooked and drained. Add it to the skillet.
Stir to coat the pasta in the flavor infused oil. Sprinkle with salt and pepper to taste.
These are the two cheese that I used. One inexpensive, one expensive. I originally mixed up one cup of each, but ended up only using about half of it for this dish (or one cup total). You could use just one of these cheeses and the dish would still be great.
I just shredded the gouda and mixed it into the less expensive cheese.
Sprinkle the cheese over top. I only used about one cup of cheese total. Because the dish uses oil as a sauce, too much cheese would make this dish really heavy.
Stir everything together.
…and enjoy every bite of this amazing Spicy Sausage and Broccoli Pasta!
Made this last night and it was a success! BF said it was like I “was really cooking from scratch!” We both appreciated that it felt healthy and was filling.
Only modification I did was to add a couple spoonfuls of the pasta water to the sausage/broccoli/pasta combo to give it a tiny bit of a saucy feel.
Super yummo! I added mushrooms and red onion (needed to use it up) this will be made again, hubby loved it! Thank you so much!
Thanks so much for this recipe! I made it tonight and my family loved it. I made it minus the red pepper flakes since my husband can’t take the heat, and minus the gouda since I didn’t have any. I also added a little chicken broth during the last few minutes since we like our pasta a little saucy. It was delicious!
Easy to make, but bland and very dry. Needs some kind of sauce to blend flavors together. Will try some chicken stock and a few tablespoons of light sour cream.
made for dinner tonight…love the simple goodness…easy to put together & full of flavor…my family loved! Thank you for sharing!
I made this tonight and thought the flavor was great! I used spicy italian sausage and 3/4 cup mozzarella and 1/4 cup parm, and it was the right amount of gooey.
The only change I’d make is add more sausage… there just wasn’t enough protein here for it to be filling without eating way too much of the pasta (which ends up being a lot of calories). I got a store brand package that had 7 links in it for $2.50 (I used 3 of the links, 8.5oz total) so if you buy store brand, it’ll be cheaper than what you have listed above. Also usually buying bulk sausage (not in the casings) from the butcher counter tends to be cheaper.
I’ll definitely make this again, it’s super easy, cheap, and great for a weeknight! I also like that this would lend itself to using a wide variety of different meats and veggies.
Mmm, yes, kale and sausage go great together! :D Add some parmesan and you’ve got a great trio.
I made this last night with feta instead of gouda and it was yummO! I thought of doing this with kale instead of broccoli, but I’ve never tasted kale before, so I don’t know if it would be good?
I have made a few of your recipes, and have 3 more on this weeks menu to come! Thanks so much. They have all been phenomenal so far!
I love your site and have made at least 7 of your recipes. Thanks so much!
Loved this! I went on a sausage binge when it was on sale and it was perfect for this recipe. Instead of gouda, I just sprinkled some parmesan cheese and 1/2 cup pasta water to make a creamy sauce. The broccoli made it so much heartier!
I had this for dinner tonight and it was amazing! I used asiago cheese instead of the gouda (I do love gouda, but I already had the asiago) and it was delicious. It was super easy, and it made me feel like I’d done something really special and fancy. Thanks so much for another winner! :)
Just made this tonight and it was a super, everyone loved it. Thank you for sharing.
Hubby had this for lunch today and loved it! This recipe is a keeper!!!
Beth – you did it again! This was the best recipe I’ve tried in a long time. I always know I can find something absolutely delicious and cheap from Budget Bytes! Thanks so much.