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

4.99 from 922 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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489 Comments

  1. 4 stars
    The only thing I’d change is adding mushroom amd sauteing the onion and mushroom for a few minutes before adding the sausage! I also added onion and chive cream cheese to thicken the sauce and add more flavor. A++

  2. 5 stars
    Since making this about 4 months ago, my husband wants it EVERY WEEK! I thought he’d be sick of it by now. It’s so simple and delicious!

  3. 5 stars
    So I had to do a little tweaking because of what I had on hand. Had to use shells instead of penne, 2% milk instead of cream and I added the cream cheese like another reviewer noted. The boys liked it and I thought it was pretty good myself. Thank you for the fast recipe

  4. 5 stars
    VERY good. I made it exactly as directed but added two items:
    1. Small Roma tomatoes, which I stirred in about halfway through so that they got sot and the desirable amount of mushy;

    2. To the spinach leaves I added 6 large basil leaves from our thriving plant. I treated them as if the were spinach.

    Great dinner. Thanks!

  5. 5 stars
    I added some basil pesto and a little bit of cream cheese…OMG!! My boyfriend couldn’t even wait to take it for lunch! He ate it for breakfast this morning and asked if I would be making more tonight lol. Amazing recipe!

  6. 5 stars
    Our pediatrician put my 4 year old on a “calorie dense” diet. This meal was such a hit! He stopped mid bite and yelled “Mom! This is sooo delicious! It’s yummy in my tummy.” Couldn’t agree more, and thanks for helping my son gain some healthy weight!