Toss your favorite pasta shape in this rich and creamy tomato sauce with sautéed sausage and onions. Top with grated parmesan cheese and serve for the ultimate comfort food.
PREP TIME 5 minutesminutes
COOK TIME 15 minutesminutes
TOTAL TIME 20 minutesminutes
YIELD 6servings
Ingredients
1(16 oz) box of pastaa short noodle like penne, rigatoni, or corkscrews will work best
1tbspolive oil
1.5poundsbulk Italian sausagesweet, mild, hot, or a mix
1oniondiced
3tspminced garlic
1/3cupwhite wine
1(24 oz) jar tomato basil sauce
1cupheavy cream
Instructions
Cook the pasta according to the directions on the package using the shorter time listed so the noodles are firm. Drain and set aside.
Meanwhile as you're waiting for the water to come to a boil, begin the sauce.
In a large skillet over Medium-High heat, add the olive oil and let it heat up until it shimmers. Add the sausage and break it up into crumbles with a spoon as it cooks. Continue to cook and stir the sausage until it becomes golden brown and slightly toasted looking or the meat will be chewy.
Add the chopped onion and garlic to the hot skillet, stir and cook until the onions have softened and become translucent.
Add the wine to the skillet and stir until the liquid has mostly evaporated.
Turn the heat down to Medium-Low and then add the jar of tomato sauce. Stir to combine.
Wait to add the cream to the skillet until the pasta has been drained and is ready for tossing. Add the cream, stir it into the sauce. Let it cook for 1 - 2 minutes to heat through. Add the pasta to the skillet and gently toss to combine.
Serve immediately with grated parmesan for topping.
Recipe Notes
Make-Ahead Tips:The tomato and sausage sauce can be made ahead of time and stored in the fridge up to 24 hours or even frozen as long as you save the cream for adding when you reheat it. The cream will cause the sauce to separate if stored overnight or frozen. To serve: Boil the pasta fresh just before you want to eat. Reheat the sauce over Medium-Low heat in a large skillet. If the sauce is too thick, you can add a ladle of the water from the pasta pot. Add the cream just before the pasta and serve.Variations:When serving kids, a sweet Italian sausage is always popular. For more adventurous eaters, you could use hot Italian sausage or add several shakes of roasted red pepper flakes to sweet sausage as it browns.