One-Dish Creamy Pasta with Sausage

I may have mentioned that I buy the natural meats the manager has put on special and freeze them until I am ready to cook them. I had defrosted sausages with blue cheese in anticipation of the previously mentioned grill day, but that wasn’t the case, so I needed to make sausage.  I ran to Google to see what I could do.

I searched for an hour but was unsatisfied with the recipes I found.  I was mildly tempted by the idea of a Buffalo sauce for the sausage since it contained blue cheese, and I have a bottle of Frank’s in the refrigerator for significant cheat days, but no…I prefer the creamy blue cheese dipping part of eating Buffalo wings and would lose that here.

I ended up modifying a recipe from Serious Eats, using gluten-free pasta and adding vegetables, including diced tomatoes, which you will find in a lot of my food because I love tomatoes and have a subscription. It was pretty tasty. In fact, I just pulled the leftovers out of the freezer so Papa Satyr can eat them while I have Paleo leftovers one night this week.

Creamy Greek Pasta and Sausage (Dinner) Serves 6-8

• 2 tbsp extra-virgin olive oil
• 1/2 onion, diced
• 1-lb semi-cured Greek pork sausages, or sweet Italian sausages, cut into 1-inch pieces
• Kosher salt, to taste
• 1 package pasta, preferably penne or some other tubular pasta
• 1 cup white wine
• 1 ounce feta, blue, or goat cheese, crumbled
• 1/2 cup heavy cream
• 1/3 cup loosely packed fresh oregano leaves
• 2 cups baby spinach
• 1 15-oz can diced tomatoes, drained and rinsed
• 1 14-oz jar of artichoke hearts, drained and rinsed
• 1/2 cup shredded Parmesan cheese for garnish
• 1/4 cup fresh parsley, chopped
• Freshly ground black pepper, to taste

1. Heat the olive oil over medium-high heat in a large, deep pan such as a chef’s pan, then add the onion and cook until translucent, about 4 minutes.
2. Add sausage and cook until golden, stirring only occasionally, ~10 minutes.
3. Bring a large pot of water to boil and cook the pasta until desired texture. Before draining the pasta, reserve 1 cup of the cooking water.
4. Add the wine and turn the heat high once you have browned the sausages. Reduce the liquid for 2 minutes, lower the heat, and add the feta cheese, cream, and oregano. Once the cheese melts, add the pasta and the reserved pasta water as needed to create a creamy sauce that is not too thick.
5. Add the vegetables and cook until warm only.  Add more pasta water, if necessary.
6. Season to taste with salt and pepper, divide among plates, and garnish with Parmesan and parsley.

This dish reheats excellently in a casserole dish at 400°F for 25-40 minutes, depending on the amount left and the depth of the dish.  Make ahead and reheat for a potluck.  Share the love with your friends.  

The meat, of course, is entirely optional. Substitute with canned or thoroughly soaked chickpeas or cooked lentils in similar quantities.