For the last few years, I’ve been making them lunch at least three days a week. It’s become a thing and to make it even more special, we do a bible study at the lunch table. It’s become a core memory for all of us, feeding the body, feeding the soul.

These lunches take less than an hour, and sometimes are simply left-over dinners reheated and redone.

Orzo with Italian Sausage and White Beans (Cannellini Beans) is a perfect pre-ride lunch, full of carbs, protein and flavor. It only took 30 minutes to make and not one bite was left in the pan.

Orzo will absorb a LOT of liquid so make sure you do not throw out the pasta water. Keep adding until you get

Today, I had some spicy Italian sausage, (loose), white cannellini beans, passata, orzo, heavy cream, chicken broth, and a little white wine. The beans, passata and pasta are staples. You can make very quick meals with these ingredients. The sausage was a plus and we happened to have it. Of course, this dish started with sofrito, that is carrots, onion and celery.

The boys absolutely love this pasta dish of white beans and rigatoni and want it every week. This is kind of a spin on that. It’s easy comfort food, and even though it’s now Spring, there’s always time for the kind of food that makes you happy.

You might not know what passata is. You will find it in jars in the grocery store next to canned tomatoes. I like this because, you can use just the amount you want and then keep in refrigerator for at least a week.

Ingredients for Sausage Bean Pasta Recipe

• Italian Sausage
• Passata (found in jars, a tomato puree)
• Cannellini Beans
• Orzo
• White Wine
• Chicken Broth
• Heavy Cream
• Rosemary
• Garlic

More Pasta Recipes from Spinach Tiger

• Pasta with Peas and Bacon
• Tuscan White Beans Pasta
• How to Cook Pasta like an Italian
• Hearty Itakian Beef Rigatoni

Print

Orzo Sausage Beans Recipe

Course Pasta

Cuisine Italian

Keyword Italian sausage, orzo

Prep Time 20 minutes minutes

Cook Time 20 minutes minutes

Ingredients

• 2 tablespoons Loose Italian Sausage
• 1 pound Italian Sausage
• 1 can Cannellini Beans
• 1 cup Tomato Passata
• 1/3 cup white wine optional
• 1 pound Orzo Pasta
• 1/2 cup Heavy cream
• 2 sprigs Rosemary
• 1/2 cup Pecorino Cheese at the table

Instructions

• Begin this dish by boiling a large pot of water for the orzo. (Begin this, while cooking sausage in another pot). Cook pasta until al dente. Do not throw out pasta water, which will be added to dish.
• Heat oil in large frying pan or dutch oven, (large enough to fit the sausage and pound of pasta.
• Sauté garlic cloves until golden. Add sausage, breaking up into bite sized pieces and cooking all way through.
• Remove garlic cloves. Add passata, which will be just enough to mix into sausage. This is not a tomato sauce dish. Add in sprigs of rosemary.
• Add white wine if using and cook down on low for about ten minutes to cook off alcohol.
• Rinse can of beans. Add to dish.
• Season with salt and pepper.
• Add in orzo pasta. Mix thoroughly and add one ladle of pasta water. The starchy pasta water will help to thicken. You might need to add more passata. You can judge this if you think you need more. I never add more than one cup.
• Stir in heavy cream at the end.
• Serve with grated pecorino cheese.

The post Orzo, Italian Sausage, White Beans appeared first on Spinach Tiger.

Made with passata (strained tomato sauce) heavy cream, white wine, the sauce is delicate and yet flavorful because of the sausage. This was something made for lunch on the fly and you will love it. It’s also really good left over.

We just returned from Italy, where we ate pasta almost every day. Actually, the boys who were with us (now 17) did eat pasta at least once and sometimes twice a day. These are the twins you’ve heard about here since the inception of this blog, born in 2007 and the blog born in early 2009. They’ve been along for the ride and in the kitchen for so many of the meals

Since we returned, I’ve been experimenting with new pasta dishes, because the boys eat lunch here about 4 times a week. .

You’ve probably heard that when people go to Italy, they can eat and pasta and bread without issue and weight gain. It’s true, but of course, take in mind, there is a lot of walking which probably helps the metabolism process the carbs. Also, there’s not a lot of junk food, snacks or sweets outside of gelato.

Even though most of my recipes are low-carb, you have families that don’t eat that way and sometimes you want to have some pasta too. You can make this sauce and serve it with spaghetti squash.

This dish, featuring a creamy sausage ragu takes less than an hour to make and it’s super easy, and satisfying.

Ingredients

• Hot Italian Sausage
• Carrot, Onion, Celery
• Jarred Passata (or tomato puree)
• Heavy Cream
• Pecorino Cheese
• White Wine
• Pasta AND Pasta Broth

Note on Pasta Broth: It’s a secret weapon for pasta dishes. It contains starch and will help thicken the sauce. It’s very important in this dish.

Choosing the Pasta

I used a small rigatoni, which has ridges and heft and works well with this sauce. This would work well with penne pasta, orecchiette, or gnocchi.

Process for Creamy Sausage Ragu

• Heat oil in pan.
• Chop celery, carrot, onion as small as possible, because you won’t have the several hours it takes to cook them down. If you only have onion that’s fine too.
• Crumble the sausage into the pot.
• When sausage is cooked through, add in white wine and cook for twenty minutes until the alcohol is cooked off. You can skip the wine, if you don’t have any.
• Add in just enough passata (puree) to cover the sausage. This is not a heavy tomato sauce. Heat through about ten minutes.
• Add any herbs you have like thyme, parsley, basil.
• Boil your pasta about 2 minutes before the directions. Save the pasta water. This is the best part.
• Add pasta water to the sausage, a ladle at a time. The starch helps to thicken the sauce. I eventually added three ladles. Add in about 1/2 cup heavy cream.
• Add a cup of grated pecorino cheese and serve more at the table.
• Season as you need with salt and pepper.

Pin this

Similar Recipes

• Spaghetti Squash, Ricotta, Bolognese
• Authentic Bolognese
• Bolognese with Pork and Peach
• How to Cook Pasta like an Italian

Print

Creamy Sausage Ragu

Easy, Fast Creamy Tomato Ragu, perfect for pasta, pizza, vegetables.

Course Entree

Cuisine Italian

Keyword edamame pasta, sausage bolognese, sausage ragu

Prep Time 10 minutes minutes

Cook Time 30 minutes minutes

Pasta cooking time 8 minutes minutes

Ingredients

• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 1/2 onion small dice
• 2 medium carrots small dice
• 2 celery stalks small dice
• 1 pound loose Italian sausage
• 2 cups passata (tomato puree)
• 1/2 cup white wine
• 1/2 cup heavy cream
• 1 cup pasta water more if needed
• 2 cups pecorino cheese grated, divided

Pasta

• 1 pound pasta
• 1 tablespoon salt
• 1 large pot water

Instructions

• Heat oil in pan.
• Chop celery, carrot, onion as small as possible, because you won't have the several hours it takes to cook them down. If you only have onion that's fine too. Saute for five minutes.
• Crumble sausage into the frying pan.
• In meantime, boil water and cook pasta up to 2 minutes before done time. You'll finish cooking in the sauce.
• Add in just enough passata or tomato puree to cover the sausage. This is not a heavy tomato sauce. Heat through about ten minutes.
• Add any chopped herbs you have.
• Optional: Add white wine and continue cooking on low for about ten minutes or until alcohol is cooked off.
• Add heavy cream.
• When you are ready to add pasta to pan, add in a ladle of pasta water, as needed. The starch helps to thicken the sauce.I eventually added three ladles
• At this point you can decide if you need to add more tomato puree or more pasta water.
• Toss with 1 cup of grated pecorino cheese. Cook another minute stirring.
• Serve immediately with more pecorino cheese.
• NOTE: IF You use mild sausage, consider adding in some red chili flakes.

Pasta

• Large pot boiling water, salted. Do not add oil.
• Cook pasta 2 minutes less than directions.

The post Creamy Sausage Ragu with Pasta (made fast) appeared first on Spinach Tiger.