Description
Hearty creamy Italian sausage pasta bake delivers comfort straight from Mediterranean kitchens. Robust flavors blend seamlessly, promising rich satisfaction for home cooks craving bold, authentic Italian cuisine you’ll savor with passion.
Ingredients
Scale
- 1 lb (0.45 kg) ground Italian sausage
- 12 oz (340 g) penne or fusilli pasta
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- 1 small yellow onion, diced
- 3 cloves garlic, minced
- 2 tbsps tomato paste
- ½ cup (120 ml) chicken broth
- 1 (14.5 oz or 411 g) can diced tomatoes, undrained
- ¾ tsp dried oregano
- ¾ tsp dried basil
- ¾ tsp dried parsley
- Salt and pepper, to taste
- ½ cup (120 ml) half and half or heavy cream
- ½ cup (50 g) grated Parmesan cheese
- ⅓ cup (37 g) shredded mozzarella cheese
Instructions
- Preparation: Ignite the oven to 375°F (190°C) and simultaneously set a generously salted water pot to boil for pasta.
- Pasta Cooking: Submerge pasta in rolling boils until achieving al dente texture, extracting and preserving a cup of starchy liquid before draining completely.
- Sausage Transformation: In a robust skillet, unleash olive oil’s potential over medium heat, crumbling Italian sausage and searing until achieving a caramelized, bronzed exterior with no trace of raw pink.
- Aromatic Foundation: Using the sausage’s residual fat, sauté onions until translucent, then introduce garlic and tomato paste, stirring vigorously to unlock complex flavor profiles without scorching.
- Liquid Alchemy: Deglaze the skillet with chicken broth, incorporating caramelized remnants, then introduce diced tomatoes and dried herbs, allowing the mixture to reduce and intensify for 5-7 minutes.
- Creamy Integration: Cascade half and half into the sauce, stirring consistently to create a velvety consistency, then reunite sausage with pasta, ensuring complete sauce envelopment.
- Cheese Fusion: Generously sprinkle Parmesan and mozzarella, stirring until achieving a seamless, molten integration throughout the pasta mixture.
- Baking Finale: Transfer the culinary creation to a baking dish, spreading evenly, and bake for 20-25 minutes until the surface erupts with golden-brown bubbling perfection.
Notes
- Pasta Water Magic: Reserved starchy liquid helps create silky, clingy sauce that perfectly coats every pasta strand.
- Sausage Searing Technique: Cook meat until golden brown to develop deep, caramelized flavor profiles that elevate the entire dish.
- Cheese Melting Tip: Allow cheeses to completely incorporate, creating a luxurious, smooth texture without clumping or separating.
- Oven Browning Secrets: Watch carefully during final baking stage to achieve a beautiful golden-brown top without burning the delicate pasta surface.
- Prep Time: 15 minutes
- Cook Time: 45 minutes
- Category: Dinner
- Method: Baking
- Cuisine: Italian
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 7
- Calories: 466
- Sugar: 4 g
- Sodium: 660 mg
- Fat: 25 g
- Saturated Fat: 10 g
- Unsaturated Fat: 11 g
- Trans Fat: 0 g
- Carbohydrates: 37 g
- Fiber: 2 g
- Protein: 24 g
- Cholesterol: 70 mg