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This Italian Sausage Bow Tie Pasta is easy – and reminds me of something you would get at an Italian restaurant. Our family loves it … and I hope yours does too!
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Brian and I had our first “date” at Olive Garden. At the time, Brian lived out of town, so he had a little further to go to get to that Olive Garden than I did. Or so I thought. I arrived early and decided to sit in my car and wait for him to arrive (which wasn’t a long wait). We talked to each other on the phone while he was driving into town … and I guess he missed the part about telling me he was in the parking lot – because he snuck up on me … and gave me a mini heart attack by knocking on my window.
After giving him a hard time, we went inside and enjoyed a nice meal together … and talked a lot! I absolutely love that we can talk for hours and hours …. and we have the cell phone bills to prove it. ?
A little surprise
Towards the end of the date, when they bring the check – they also bring you those little Andes mints. I may have flicked one of those mints at him (imagine elementary school – when you flicked the paper football through your friend’s hands that were the “uprights”), which totally caught him off guard. He had no idea it was coming, and it hit him in the chest. The look on his face was priceless. I like to believe that’s when we both knew it was love. ? He also learned a crucial lesson that day about his future wife – always expect the unexpected! And sometimes, I play too much! ? Hehehe.
My husband loves Italian food. It’s probably his favorite. From time to time, I like to surprise him with dishes I know he’ll like. This Italian Sausage Bow Tie Pasta is an easy one! It reminds me of something you would get at an Italian restaurant.
Italian Sausage Bow Tie Pasta is full of perfectly cooked pasta in a creamy tomato sauce with plenty of chopped spinach and chunks of spicy or sweet Italian sausage. It’s bound to be a new family favorite.
Recipe for Italian Sausage Bow Tie Pasta
- bow tie pasta
- olive oil
- Italian sausage
- red pepper flakes
- onion
- garlic
- Italian-style plum tomatoes
- heavy cream
- spinach
- fresh parsley
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How to make Bow Tie Pasta and Italian Sausage recipe:
- Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Cook the pasta according to package directions; drain.
- Meanwhile, in a large skillet add the olive oil then cook and crumble the sausage and red pepper flakes over medium-high heat until cooked through and browned. Add onion and garlic. Cook until the onion is tender. Add the tomatoes and heavy cream. Simmer until the mixture thickens, about 10 minutes. Add the spinach and cook an additional 3 minutes. Add the cooked pasta to the sauce. Sprinkle with parsley, if desired.
A few tips for Italian Sausage with Bow Tie Pasta:
- Use whatever kind of Italian sausage you prefer – mild, sweet, or hot. You can even use turkey Italian sausage if you prefer! I usually use mild because of personal preference.
- If you buy the Italian sausage with casings, be sure to cut the casings open and use the ground meat.
- No heavy cream? For every 1 cup of heavy cream, melt 1/4 cup of butter and slowly whisk in 3/4 cup milk. This works for most recipes that require heavy cream, but it will not whisk into stiff peaks.
- Leftovers are great reheated for lunch the next day!
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Italian Sausage Bow Tie Pasta
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Equipment
Ingredients
- 12 oz bow tie pasta
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 1 pound mild Italian sausage, casings removed
- ½ teaspoon red pepper flakes, optional
- ½ cup diced onion
- 4 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 can Italian-style plum tomatoes, drained and coarsely chopped, 28 oz.
- 1 ½ cups heavy cream
- 1 cup packed spinach leaves, cut into thin strips
- Fresh parsley, minced (optional)
Instructions
- Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Cook pasta according to package directions; drain.
- Meanwhile, in a large skillet add the olive oil then cook and crumble the sausage and red pepper flakes over medium-high heat until cooked through and browned. Add onion and garlic. Cook until onion is tender.
- Add the tomatoes and heavy cream. Simmer until the mixture thickens, about 10 minutes. Add the spinach and cook an additional 3 minutes. Add the cooked pasta to the sauce. Sprinkle with parsley, if desired.
Notes
- Use whatever kind of Italian sausage you prefer – mild, sweet, or hot. You can even use turkey Italian sausage if you prefer! I usually use mild because of personal preference.
- If you buy the Italian sausage with casings, be sure to cut the casings open and use the ground meat.
- Leftovers are great reheated for lunch the next day!
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Originally published on September 6, 2012. Updated on May 9, 2020.
It’s amazing
Yummmm! Thank you for posting/sharing this recipe! We love it!
Love! Made this as a surprise dinner for my guy (bow tie pasta is his favorite), and both him and I were over the moon about it! We actually had it twice in one night it was so good!
It was inexpensive and impressively delicious. I would suggest prepping/cutting up all the veggies before you start cooking because cook time goes surprisingly fast. Plus if you do this you can put on a Netflix show or movie and watch while you prep/cook. Makes it a little more fun!
I chose mild Italian sausage because he likes it mild but if it were my taste buds only I’d use spicy Italian sausage and put in extra red pepper flakes.
Pro Tip: Take the time to slice the spinach in thin strips like Jamie suggests. I know that part’s a little tedious but its worth it because it doesn’t clump when cooked. Also if you like tomatoes, don’t be afraid to maybe add a little extra of the canned tomatoes and maybe a little less creme if you’re trying to cut back on cream. I’m going to try this next time 🙂 (but I also have a little obsession with tomatoes so that’s totally personal preference).
Great for left overs! Great recipe! Thank you Jamie for taking the time to create and share!
Thanks so much for the feedback, Morgan! I appreciate it and I’m so glad you guys enjoyed it!
I think this would be a great recipe to add diced zucchini and/or yellow squash to. It would be very colorful as well as delicious!
I think those would be great additions!
This turned out beautifully! I added in corn and peas, upped the red pepper flakes to 1 tsp, and coated chicken, instead of sausage, with salt, pepper, and Italian seasoning.
I just read through the comments before asking my question. Could you substitute green peas instead of the spinach? I like the spinach, but the green peas would add an additional flavor.
Your comments would be greatly appreciated.
I’m sure that would be fine. If you try it that way, I would love to hear your thoughts.
This came out really good!!
Looking forward to making this for my hubby’s birthday dinner.
I hope y’all enjoy it!
Just made this for my family for the first time, and it was sooooooo delicious! Everyone loved it. 🙂
This has become one of my family’s favorite dishes! Thank you! To make it easier (and I REALLY am bad about taking time to measure accurately), I just used a 10 oz bag of spinach, and I lessened the cream and just added a splach of broth so I wouldn’t feel so bad when I add some cheese to the top. 🙂
Thanks, Shirene! I appreciate the feedback and I’m so glad you enjoy the recipe!
This was really good! Used Italian Chicken sausage and cut back on the red pepper flakes. Quick and easy, will definitely be making again! Thank You!!