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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!
Italian Sausage Bow Tie Pasta
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.
New favorite! I like it spicy so I used diced tomatoes with green chili, spicy sausage, and left out the red pepper. Used Greek yogurt and 1/2 and 1/2….was delicious!!! Thank you for sharing!
This is one of my kids and husbands favorites. Did not change anything in recipe except sometimes I use half and half instead of heavy cream. Thank you for this awesome recipe
Your recipes are always so good. This was too! I’m not sure if it was necessary, but I left my cream on the counter in the measuring cup for about an hour so it wouldn’t curdle when I added it. I hope you are doing well and happy! 🙂
Made this tonight and we loved it! There were 3 of us eating and we have lots of leftovers. The only change I’ll make next time is to use only 3/4 box of pasta. The sauce was so delicious and it seemed there was more pasta than sauce.
We found this recipe from pinterest and have been making it once or twice a month for over a year now. It is SO good, one of our absolute favorites, even my picky husband’s absolute fave recipe. He asks for it all the time. We sub the plum tomatoes for petite diced canned tomatoes and we add some mozzarella at the end. I share the link with anyone who needs a good pasta dish! Thanks so much
This is one of my favorite dishes to make !! It’s easy and delicious !
We love this recipe! I shared with my sister and she really loves it!
Was bland upon first taste, but the flavors intensify the longer it all sits together. I added zucchini for more veggies for the kids and topped with parm – parsley addition is also another nice layer of flavor. Can’t wait to have it for leftovers for lunch – WAY too much bowtie though, even after adding the extra veggies – I’d use 3/4 pound of pasta instead of a full pound (unless the bowties I purchased were just larger than usual – no options at the store other than stupid expensive huge bowties!)
Great recipe! I added some shredded Italian cheese & it was perfect!
Thank you for a wonderful recipe. My husband and I love this. Make it regularly. It’s absolutely delicious!!