Spicy Sausage and Spinach Skillet Pasta

Spicy sausage pasta, made all in one pan – I’m not sure who the genius is that invented the one pot pasta meal, but I’d like to give them a HUGE high five! It’s brilliant. This  spicy sausage pasta comes together in  one pan with a few ingredients in about 20 min. and boom! dinner is on the table.

An easy healthy meal with no clean up, what more could you ask for? How about Italian chicken sausage, spicy tomato sauce, ooey gooey melted cheese and some fresh spinach. That’s how we’re rolling this week for One Pot Wednesday…bring on the spicy sausage pasta!

Here’s a way to make a home cooked meal in a jiffy…ahh ha ha…I cant believe that word “jiffy” just jumped out of my head and on to the page! Do people even say “jiffy” any more? I’m not sure I’ve ever used the word “jiffy”. What part of the brain archive did that just emerge from?

Call it whatever you want (hopefully not “jiffy”) but this spicy sausage pasta is a great go-to dinner when you need to get something on the table and don’t have much time. Or, in my case, when you forget to stop at the grocery store (again!- I swear my car has auto pilot from work to home-no stops) and are looking for pantry staples to use as the base of a quick meal.

Everything gets cooked in one big skillet, even the noodles.

Start by browning the chicken sausage.

Add in the onion, chicken broth, pasta sauce, diced tomatoes, Rotel, milk and pasta. Bring pasta to a boil; cover, reduce heat and simmer until the pasta is cooked al dente.

The Rotel is what gives this pasta dish its spicy kick. You can make some substitutions to match your own preference for spiciness. Increase amount of diced tomatoes and reduce (or omit) the Rotel for a more mild version. I’d put it at about a 4 on a scale of 1-10 (10 being super hot) with the recipe quantities.

If you love the heat, substitute spicy chicken Italian sausage for the original variety. There’s lots of room to personalize this dish to meet  your family’s taste buds. (If Rotel is not available in your market there are some ideas in the recipe section of this post for substitutions)

Stir in the cheese and spinach and cook until cheese is melted. See how easy that was! Boom! One pot spicy sausage pasta { + spinach}  …yum!

It’s also possible to tweak with the recipe if you’d prefer to have a small skillet dinner for one or two. Works perfectly in a smaller skillet, just reduce the  amount of ingredients.  Quicker than take out and much less expensive!  You can also multitask (like drink some wine and watch The Voice) while this easy  spicy sausage pasta  is cooking. Who me?

Looking for a good skillet to make meals such as this? Here’s the one I use (affiliate link)

Spicy Sausage and Spinach Skillet Pasta

 

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Prep time

10 mins

Cook time

10 mins

Total time

20 mins

 

Author: SimpleHealthyKitchen.com

Serves: 4

Ingredients

• 12 oz. chicken Italian sausage, casing removed (approx. 4 chicken sausages) (use the spicy variety if you like extra spicy)
• 1/ 4 cup green onions, chopped
• 1½ cups chicken broth
• 1 cup jarred pasta sauce, your favorite variety (or tomato sauce)
• 1 cup diced tomatoes
• 1 cup Rotel * (available in the grocery store in the tomato section. A spicy mixture of tomatoes and green chilis)
• ½ cup milk, reduced fat
• 8 oz. rotini pasta (or penne)
• 1 cup mozzarella cheese, shredded
• 1 cup fresh spinach, washed and stems trimmed

Instructions

1. Heat olive oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add the chicken Italian sausage (casings removed) to the pan and cook until browned (approx. 5 min.) Make sure to crumble the sausage with a wooden spoon so it’s the consistency of ground beef. Drain any fat if necessary.
2. Stir in onion, chicken broth, pasta sauce, diced tomatoes, Rotel, milk and pasta. Bring to a boil; cover, reduce heat and simmer until the pasta is cooked al dente (approx. 10-12 min).
3. Add cheese and spinach and cook until cheese is melted (approx. 1 min.).
4. Serve immediately. Garnish with additional chopped spinach, fresh tomatoes, or mozzarella cheese if desired.

*Rotel is essentially a mixture of diced tomatoes and green chilis. If it is not available in your market or if you prefer, you can substitute 1 cup diced tomato + diced green chilis to taste. Salsa would probably also be a decent substitute.

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