Get cozy this fall with a simple and delicious sausage pasta meal, featuring Halloween-themed pasta!
Although the only thing particularly festive about this recipe is the shape of the pasta, it's most assuredly a warm, comforting, carb-heavy meal great for cooler weather. It's a go-to, quick recipe that frequently appears on our table every fall and winter.
We saw adorable tricolor Halloween shaped pasta at Aldi and just had to make this. It's not even cool here yet - the thermometer reads 82 degrees as we write this, and was pushing 90 last night when this dish reached the table - but it is October, and that means spooky season is in full swing under this particular roof. The neighbors have already complained about our skeleton lawn flamingoes.
Anyway, back to the reason you're actually here - the food.
Tools:
Knife
Cutting board
Measuring cups and spoons
Can opener
Large, heavy-bottomed pan or stock pot with lid
Slotted spoon
Ingredients:
+/- 1 pound pasta of choice
3 1/2 cups chicken broth
1/2 cup alcohol of choice (vodka or white wine recommended)
1/2 pound ground Italian sausage (sweet or hot)
1 yellow bell pepper
1 orange bell pepper
1 shallot
1 28-ounce can crushed tomato
1 tablespoon olive oil
4 tablespoons minced garlic
1 tablespoon dried oregano
1 tablespoon dried parsley
1 teaspoon dried basil
1 teaspoon onion powder
1/2 teaspoon granulated sugar
black pepper and crushed red pepper to taste
Although the only thing particularly festive about this recipe is the shape of the pasta, it's most assuredly a warm, comforting, carb-heavy meal great for cooler weather. It's a go-to, quick recipe that frequently appears on our table every fall and winter.
We saw adorable tricolor Halloween shaped pasta at Aldi and just had to make this. It's not even cool here yet - the thermometer reads 82 degrees as we write this, and was pushing 90 last night when this dish reached the table - but it is October, and that means spooky season is in full swing under this particular roof. The neighbors have already complained about our skeleton lawn flamingoes.
Anyway, back to the reason you're actually here - the food.
Before doing anything else (you already know what we're going to say) - wash your produce!
Dice your peppers and shallot to desired size, but leave them on the cutting board for now.
Place your pan on a burner and turn the heat up to medium. Add your olive oil to the pan and allow it to heat up for a minute, then add the minced garlic and the black pepper. You may think this looks like a lot of garlic. We feel it is barely enough. Adjust to your own liking as necessary. Let the garlic and pepper cook until fragrant.
Add in your Italian sausage, crumble it and let it brown. Be momentarily awed at how little fat it lets off, side-eye the colander or similar implement you had out despite it not being in the list of tools, and put it back where it belongs. Open the can of crushed tomato while you wait for the sausage to finish browning.
Add the oregano, basil, parsley and onion powder and sugar to the pan. Sprinkle in a little crushed red pepper if your family is spice tolerant; otherwise save it to add to your own plate later. Give everything a good stir, then add in the peppers, shallot and whole can of crushed tomato. Stir again. Cover the pan and reduce the heat by half. If you have a stubbornly hot electric burner (we do) that HATES to drop even a degree, remove it from the heat entirely while you wait for the burner to cool down, or shift it to another burner that has been set where you want it. Letting it sit on a too-hot burner will scorch the sausage to the bottom of the pan and make cleanup much more demanding.
Wait a couple minutes until you see the tomato start to bubble, but don't bring it up to full boil... mostly because boiling tomato sauce makes a BIG mess.
Tear into the box or bag of pasta you plan to use. We paused a minute to move some of the pasta to a dish in order to show off the cute shapes - owls and pumpkins and witches and bats and spiders! - in a photo for you. You probably have no reason to waste time or energy on that step, but do what makes you happy. Dump the pasta into the pan.
Measure your alcohol (we used white cooking wine because we rarely keep anything else on hand, but vodka would be fantastic if you have it around) and pour it into the pan. Measure your chicken broth in the same measuring cup, then add it, too.
Keeping the heat no higher than medium, allow the pasta to simmer uncovered in the tomato/broth/booze mixture for 10-12 minutes or until the pasta has reached the desired tenderness level.
Definitely enjoy with garlic bread if at all possible.
As you enjoy this delicious meal, spend a minute thinking about your stove. All of this was done with just one pot but there were a few steps that could go wrong if your stove isn't functioning properly. Whether you have a gas or an electric stove, it is vital to your cooking for it to function properly. You know that and so do we. So if you have started noticing that maybe your food is coming out burnt more often, or burners are staying on for too long, you might want to call in the professionals.
Some electric stoves, like ours, just stay hot longer. It's part of the way that they're constructed and the reason why professionals love gas stoves so much. But if you know something is wrong with yours or if you know that it is staying hotter for far longer than it should, we can help. You can reach out to appliance rescue service via our website link below, or by giving us a call. We will work with you to find a time and date that fits your schedule and send our technicians to diagnose the problem. Whatever the problem, we are here to help.
Call (214) 599-0055
Additional Reading
Halloween Horrors In Your Home?
Pumpkin Soup From Picking to Serving
Harvest Bliss: Cranberry Pumpkin Nut Bread