This Tuscan Sausage Pasta combines tangy, sweet sun-dried tomatoes with kale and Italian sausage in a parmesan cream sauce your family will love. It's a hearty flavorful dish that comes together in about 35 minutes!
This is one of those tasty, wholesome meals that you are going to come back to again and again! A hearty pasta dish and there's a great tang from the sun-dried tomatoes. Plus, it's super easy to make with pre-made Italian sausage adding a ton of flavor and do not forget the squeeze of lemon for that extra freshness.
Note: If you want to lighten this recipe up a little feel free to substitute turkey Italian sausage and half and half for the cream. It won't have the same richness but it's still delicious!
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What You'll Need
For this Tuscan Sausage Pasta recipe you will need a large pot to boil the pasta in.
You will also need a heavy bottomed pot or large brasier to cook the sauce in. I love using my Le Creuset Cast Iron Braiser.
You will also need some kitchen basics such as a cutting board and sharp knife and measuring cups and spoons.
Ingredients & Substitutions
- Pasta: I love using penne pasta for this recipe but you can use your shape of choice!
- Italian sausage: I recommend buying ground Italian sausage, but you can also get it in the links and then squeeze out the meat. I personally love using hot Italian sausage, but when I make this for my kids I tend to use sweet Italian sausage to make it a little more mild. You can also use turkey Italian sausage for a lighter dish.
- Onion
- Garlic: I recommend using fresh, rather than the minced garlic in the jar.
- Chicken broth: If you'd like you can replace a half cup of this for white wine. You could also use vegetable broth if preferred.
- Heavy Cream: This gives a beautiful richness to the recipe. You can use half and half instead if you'd like to cut out a few calories. It's still good but you won't get quite the same flavor and consistency.
- Sun-dried tomatoes: I really like using these Amore Sun-Dried Tomatoes but you can use you favorite brand of canned or bagged tomatoes. You'll need about 10 for this recipe, but you can add more or less according to your preference.
- Kale: I love the heartiness that kale gives to this recipe. Be sure to remove the thick stems before chopping. You can substitute with spinach or baby kale if preferred.
- Lemon: This adds fantastic freshness to the recipe. Don't skip!
- Italian seasoning
- Red pepper flakes: Feel free to add more or less according to how spicy you want the dish to be.
- Parmesan cheese
- Olive oil
- Salt & pepper
Step by Step Photos
1. Cook the pasta.
Make sure you reserve at least 2 cups of the pasta water before straining.
2. Make the sauce.
While the pasta is cooking make the sauce.
Start by browning your sausage until cooked through. Use a slotted spoon to remove it from the pan onto a paper towel lined plate. Set aside.
In the same pan cook the onions. Then add minced garlic, Italian seasoning, red pepper flakes and a pinch of salt and pepper.
Cook for one minute then make a well in the center and add butter. Let that melt then add in flour and stir everything together. Cook for a minute or so before streaming in chicken broth and heavy cream.
Then add sun-dried tomatoes, kale, Parmesan cheese and a squeeze of lemon. Cook until kale is tender. Then add 1 cup of the reserved pasta water.
3. Combine everything and serve!
Add in cooked sausage and cooked pasta and mix until well combined. Add in additional pasta water to loosen the sauce as desired.
How to store this Tuscan Sausage Pasta.
You can store leftovers in the fridge in an air tight container for 3-4 days.
This recipe can be frozen for up to 3 months. Thaw overnight in the fridge and then warm on the stove or in the microwave.
When reheating you may need to add a little broth, milk or cream to thin the sauce out.
Recipe FAQ
What makes Italian sausage different from other sausages is primarily the seasoning. If you can't find pre-seasoned Italian sausage you can make your own version by combining 1 lb of ground pork with a splash of red wine vinegar, ½ teaspoon each of salt and pepper, 1 tablespoon of Italian seasoning, 1 teaspoon of coarse ground fennel seed (or smash fennel seed), and ½ teaspoon each of garlic and onion powder.
It won't give you quite the same texture as pre-made sausage, but the flavor works great!
I don't recommend substituting breakfast style sausage (often sweetened with maple syrup) as it does affect the overall flavor.
For this recipe you want to cook the pasta al dente, which means cooked so it's still firm when bitten. The pasta will continue to cook after you add it to the sauce so be sure to strain it when it's still a bit firm.
Pasta water is every Italian cook's greatest trick! It's seasoned (if you salted the water properly) so it adds flavor and contains starch which thickens your sauce and helps it fully coat the pasta.
Made this Tuscan Sausage Pasta recipe? Let me know what you think in the comments!
Recipe
Tuscan Sausage Pasta
Equipment
- Large pot for cooking pasta
- heavy bottomed pot or braiser
- Measuring cups and spoons
- Cutting board and knife
- paper towel lined plate
- slotted spoon
Ingredients
- 1 lb penne pasta can substitute with pasta shape of choice
- 1 lb ground Italian sausage
- olive oil
- 1 medium onion, diced
- 3 cloves of garlic, minced
- 1 teaspoon Italian seasoning
- pinch of red pepper flakes
- pinch of salt & pepper
- 2 tablespoon butter
- 2 tablespoon all purpose flour
- 1 cup chicken broth can substitute ½ cup with white wine if desired
- 1 cup heavy cream
- 10 sun-dried tomatoes packed in oil, drained and thinly sliced
- 3 cups kale, chopped Note: remember to remove the hard stem before chopping.
- ½ cup Parmesan cheese, shredded
- ½ lemon, juice of
Instructions
- Bring a large pot of salted water to a full rolling boil. Add pasta and cook al dente according to package instructions. Reserve about 2 cups of pasta water before straining. Then strain the pasta and set aside.
- While the pasta is cooking make the sauce. Drizzle a little olive oil into a large pan and preheat over medium high. Add ground sausage to the pan and cook until browned, breaking the meat up with a spoon as it cooks.Once the meat is cooked through, use a slotted spoon to transfer the sausage to a paper towel lined plate and set aside.
- Add another drizzle of olive oil to the same pan and add in the diced onions. Cook over medium heat for 3-4 minutes until softened. Then add in minced garlic, Italian seasoning and a pinch of red pepper flakes with a pinch of salt and pepper. Cook for about a minute until fragrant.
- Make a well in the center of the onions and add in butter. Allow the butter to melt and then measure in 2 tablespoon of flour. Stir everything together and cook for about 1 minute on medium to medium high heat. While stirring, stream in 1 cup of chicken broth and 1 cup of heavy cream. Add in sun-dried tomatoes, kale, parmesan cheese and the juice of a half lemon. Cook on medium heat until the kale has wilted, about 3-4 minutes.
- Add in the cooked sausage and about 1 cup of the reserved pasta water. Then toss the pasta with the sauce until well combined and cooked through. *If the sauce seems a bit thick add in a little more of the pasta water.*
- Serve hot and top with more grated parmesan, red pepper flakes and parsley if desired. Enjoy!
Beth
I love how rich and cheesy this recipe is. I REALLY love how easy it is. I got this on the table so fast.
Tayler
This is my new favorite pasta recipe! It was so easy to make and my whole family loved it!
Sara Welch
Enjoyed this for dinner last night and it was a savory success! Quick, easy and hearty; the perfect meal for a busy weeknight, indeed!
Elizabeth Atwood
I made this last night with a few tweaks and my kids cleaned their plates so I’m definitely saving it! Biggest tweaks were using a sausage link instead of ground sausage (that’s what I had) and I blended the sauce with all the veggies before mixing altogether. A smoother sauce helped my kids not say “I don’t want the green stuff” ?. Thanks!
jamjarkitchen
Hi Elizabeth - So glad the family enjoyed and great idea with blending the sauce!