Monday, August 25, 2008

ITALIAN SAUSAGE WITH BOWTIES


~ unknown source

16 oz. package bow tie pasta
1 lb. bulk Italian sausage
1/2 c. chopped onion
1 1/2 t. minced garlic
1/2 t. crushed red pepper flakes
2 14.5 oz. cans Italian stewed tomatoes, drained and chopped
1 1/2 c. heavy whipping cream
1/2 t. salt
1/4 t. dried basil

Cook pasta according to package directions. 

Meanwhile, in a Dutch oven, cook the sausage, onion, garlic and pepper flakes over medium heat until meat is no longer pink. Drain. 

Stir in tomatoes, cream, salt and basil. Bring to boil over medium heat. Reduce heat. Simmer, uncovered, for 6-8 min or until thickened, stirring occasionally. 

Drain pasta, toss with sausage mixture. Garnish with Parmesan cheese.

Notes: We eat this over rice far more than with pasta, but we also enjoy it with bowties, small shells, or fusilli. I use two cans of regular diced tomatoes, as I always have them on hand, and dump in a little Italian seasoning to make up for the lack of it in the tomatoes. I've also made the sauce ahead of time and popped it in the freezer for an easy meal later. If you want to skip store-bought Italian sausage, you can use ground pork and add in the seasonings for both homemade sausage and Italian sausage mix.


11 comments:

Anonymous said...

Have you tried this with any other kind of meat? Chicken? Ground Turkey?

BETHANY said...

I've never tried any other meat. I suppose you could substitute something else, but part of the fantastic flavor comes from the Italian sausage. So, if you use a less flavorful meat, then you'd have to add some seasonings. And don't ask me which ones, because I don't know. I guess it would be whatever seasonings are in the sausage - fennel, Italian seasoning, etc.

Anonymous said...

Thanks Bethany. I know they have turkey italian sausage out there but I found out that the casing is still pig based. Kind of defeats the purpose.

Oh well, maybe I'll try it one day with another meat. I'll let you know if I do.

Anonymous said...

Bethany,
If tannis comes back to this I thought I might add that I tried this with a chicken sausage I got from Sam's that had no casing (hence no pork) and it was great. I'm sure the taste was a little different than intended with the italian sausage but it was still very good.

Anonymous said...

Good to know, Nicole. I'll look for the chicken sausage. I really wanted to try this recipe. :)

Jodi said...

Thanks Bethany! I found it pretty quickly. I can't wait to read what else you have on here. I just made sausage balls for our hs group Christmas party. They are soo good!
Jodi (my3starsofthesea)

Tannis said...

I made this tonight and it was very good! I did change a few things because of what I had on hand. I used Turkey Italian Sausage (and removed the casing before cooking. That eliminated the pork issue for me). I didn't add the onion or red pepper flakes as my family might murder me if I did. I didn't have Italian stewed tomatoes on hand so I used 2 cans of diced tomatoes and added 2 t. of Italian seasoning. I also didn't have whipping cream so I used half and half. HA! After typing that all out I wonder if it tastes anything like yours, Bethany. Either way, it was still yummy and I'll be making it again!

BETHANY said...

Tannis - Glad you found a way to make it work! I should add in my notes that I always replace the Italian stewed tomatoes with diced tomatoes and some Italian seasoning.

Cheri in CA said...

Bethany - I made this over the weekend and we LOVED it. Thanks!

Anonymous said...

This is also really good with sun dried tomatoes added to it!

cheri in CA said...

Bethany

I made this again this time for 30 people for my family reunion and it was a huge hit. We also served shrimp scampi but this dish was the favorite. Thanks again.