Creamy Italian Sausage Pasta is a family favorite Italian pasta recipe!  This easy pasta dish is full of savory sausage and a delicious, creamy, parmesan sauce and ready in 20 minutes!

italian sausage pasta

With back to school in full force and busy nights ahead of us, I am finding myself reaching for new quick and easy dinner inspiration.  I happen to love Italian sausage because it’s so flavorful and delicious, I can use it to make a simple meal that is flavor packed in no time. There’s nothing better than having a restaurant quality pasta dish on the table in 20 minutes!  Plus, everyone in my house loves a good creamy pasta dish any night of the week!

how to make italian sausage pasta

How to Make Italian Sausage Pasta:

  • For this Italian Sausage Pasta, you will start by cooking your penne pasta in a large pot of salted, boiling water according to package directions.
  • As soon as you add your pasta to the boiling water, you will heat some olive oil in a large skillet.  Then, add in your Italian sausage, minced onion, garlic, and red pepper flakes. Once your sausage is cooked through, you can drain any excess grease from the pan if necessary.  Then, return the meat mixture to the skillet.
  • Then, you will turn your heat down to low.  Add the cream to the pan and bring to a simmer, and put all of the spinach in the pan.  It will take about 3-5 minutes for the spinach to wilt.
  • Next, drain your pasta.  Add your shredded parmesan (fresh is best!) and pasta and give everything a good stir to coat.

creamy italian sausage pasta with spinach

You guys have spoken and seem to be loving these easy 20-30 minute weeknight meals as much as we do!  I’m happy to say this Italian sausage pasta is one of my personal faves! If you’re looking for more simple dinners, don’t miss my Creamy Parmesan One Pot Chicken and Rice or my One Pot Homemade Hamburger Helper!

Enjoy!

~Nichole

4.98 from 1134 votes

Creamy Italian Sausage Pasta

Creamy Italian Sausage Pasta is a family favorite Italian pasta recipe!  This easy pasta dish is full of savory sausage and a delicious, creamy, parmesan sauce and ready in 20 minutes!
Prep 5 minutes
Cook 15 minutes
Total 20 minutes
Servings 4

Ingredients 

Instructions 

  • Cook the penne pasta in a large pot of salted boiling water according to package directions.
  • While the pasta is cooking, heat the olive oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat.
  • Cook the Italian sausage along with the onion, garlic, red pepper flakes, and salt until the sausage is no longer pink.
  • Drain excess fat from the skillet if necessary and return the meat mixture to the pan.
  • Turn the heat to low and add the cream to the skillet. Bring to a simmer and add in the spinach.
  • Cook, stirring for about 3 minutes until the spinach is wilted.
  • Stir in the parmesan cheese until melted.  Stir the pasta into the sauce.
  • Serve immediately.

Video

Nutrition

Calories: 600kcal

Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.

Additional Info

Course: Main Course
Cuisine: American, Italian
Like this? Rate & review this recipe below!

Hey! Nice to meet you! I'm Nichole!

Welcome to The Salty Marshmallow! I'm a mom, animal lover, photographer, & kitchen mess-maker. Here you will find the result of my decades-long passion for chasing the best flavors in the kitchen, all meant to be cooked by regular people with busy lives just like you and me.

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602 Comments

  1. 5 stars
    I just found your site and this looked yummy. I was skeptical of how it would turn out because it didn’t have a lot of ingredients … but was I wrong! It was absolutely delicious! Thank you for a great recipe and I look forward to browsing your site for more!

  2. 5 stars
    I made this with silk heavy cream, Trader Joe’s plant based sausage, and follow your heart Parmesan, and it still tasted amazing, so vegans looking to substitute should be happy. I also used Trader Joe’s smoked red chili flakes for an extra bit of flavor.

  3. 5 stars
    Found this recipe doing a search for dishes with Italian Sausage. I had most everything on hand (with a few minor substitutions) and it turned out great! Instead of heavy cream, I used Half n Half. I also used a combination of parmesan and mozzarella cheeses. I left out the red pepper because I don’t like it. I used a little less than 1 lb. of the pasta (about 3/4 lb.) because that’s all I had. It was yummy!

  4. 5 stars
    Made this tonight without the red pepper flakes only because my family isn’t found of spicy. It is sooo delicious and was easy to make. Thank you!

  5. 5 stars
    It was just lovely. I added diced red pepper for colour. My husband is sensitive to the red pepper flakes so i omitted it. Still loved it. Will make it again😊