Tomorrow is the first day of spring! With a little bit of rain mixed in with beautiful, partly cloudy and cool days it is definitely feeling like it in these parts!
In honor of the change in season, I am sharing a recipe that, in a literal sense, translates to “Spring Pasta”. The light and simple dish is known for containing fresh vegetables (that commonly grow in the spring) in a light cream sauce. However, in our house, the possibilities and combinations are endless and we gladly eat this any night of the week no matter the season!
This easy to throw together dish finds its way to our menu in one way or another almost weekly. I try to always have brown rice pasta on hand, and I stockpile pre-cooked Italian sausages (loose or in links) as well as fridge staples like bell peppers, zucchini, and asparagus. But you are certainly not limited to those options, as broccoli, peas, artichoke hearts…really veggie, would all be great additions! You can also play around with the protein-we usually stick with Italian sausage but shrimp and/or diced chicken is also tasty!
With just a few kitchen staples on hand, a colorful, delicious, healthy, and easy dinner packed with protein and vegetables comes together in minutes!
If you’ve never tried brown rice pasta, I urge you to give it a chance! The key is not overcooking it, but I honestly feel that it satisfies my “pasta cravings” just as well as the wheat version. If you are totally avoiding grains and/or carbs, you could use spaghetti squash or zucchini noodles as the base for an even lighter, less carby meal.
I think that traditionally, the base of the dish may contain cream as well as a sprinkle of parmesan cheese, but if you are dairy-free, you can easily avoid it without sacrificing any taste! I like to start the “sauce” with butter, but ghee or olive oil also totally works.
A squeeze of lemon at the end of the cooking process gives a ton of fresh flavor, making this the perfect spring meal…that just might creep into summer, fall, and winter!
Ingredients
- 12 oz Italian sausage (this package of Organic Chicken Sausage from Trader Joe’s is precooked and very tasty!) Uncooked sausage (pork, turkey, or chicken) would also work, you’ll just need to give it a little more time to cook.
- 12 oz brown rice pasta (for gluten-free)
- 1/2 red bell pepper
- 1/2 orange bell pepper
- 1 bunch asparagus
- 1 large zucchini
- 4-6 cloves of garlic
- 4 Tbsp butter (or oil)
- juice of 1 lemon
- Salt & Pepper
- 1/4-1/2 cup parmesan cheese, shredded (optional)
Instructions
- Dice sausages into thin slices. Heat 1 Tbsp butter or oil in a large skillet. Saute sausage slices to brown slightly and set aside.
- Prepare/chop all of the veggies into similar, bite-sized pieces. Peel and mince garlic.
- Add 1-2 tablespoons of butter to the same pan and begin cooking the asparagus for 2 minutes. Then add the rest of the veggies, as well as a salt, pepper, and garlic. Saute until the veggies just begin to soften (about 3-5 minutes).
- While the veggies are cooking, boil a pot of water for the pasta, and cook according to package instructions. When pasta is cooked (usually takes between 8-10 minutes), drain but reserve about 1/4 cup pasta water to add back later if needed.
- Add the sausages back to the pan of veggies and mix to combine evenly.
- Add the cooked pasta to a large serving bowl, add the last 1 tablespoon of butter, and sprinkle about 1/4 cup of shredded parmesan cheese (if using), then mix well. If the pasta seems dry, slowly add back in the reserved pasta water. Add all the vegetables and sausages, and some extra salt and pepper. Lastly, add the juice of 1 lemon and mix gently.
- Serve into individual portions, and sprinkle a little extra parmesan cheese on top if using.
This dish is the easiest weeknight meal I know of. I love that I can whip it up just about any night of the week with kitchen staples in under 20 minutes, without sacrificing any nutritional value or taste (in fact, this is one of the meals my husband request most often and always goes back for seconds). Its a win, win, win all around! 
An easy weeknight meal that comes together in minutes and is packed with veggies and protein.
- 12 oz Italian sausage
- 12 oz brown rice pasta for gluten-free
- 1/2 red bell pepper
- 1/2 orange bell pepper
- 1 bunch asparagus
- 1 large zucchini
- 4-6 cloves of garlic
- 4 Tbsp butter or oil
- juice of 1 lemon
- Salt & Pepper
- 1/4-1/2 cup parmesan cheese shredded (optional)
-
Dice sausages into thin slices. Heat 1 Tbsp butter or oil in a large skillet. Saute sausage slices to brown slightly and set aside.
-
Prepare/chop all of the veggies into similar, bite-sized pieces. Peel and mince/finely chop the garlic.
-
Add another 1-2 tablespoons of butter to the same pan and begin cooking the asparagus for 2 minutes. Then add the rest of the veggies, as well as a salt, pepper, and garlic. Saute until the veggies just begin to soften (about 3-5 minutes).
-
While the veggies are cooking, boil a pot of water for the pasta, and cook according to package instructions. When pasta is cooked (usually takes between 8-10 minutes), drain but reserve about 1/4 cup pasta water to add back later if needed.
-
Add the sausages back to the pan of veggies and mix to combine evenly.
-
Add the cooked pasta to a large serving bowl, add last Tbsp of butter, and sprinkle about 1/4 cup of shredded parmesan cheese (if using), then mix well. If the pasta seems dry, slowly add the reserved pasta water. Add all the vegetables and sausages, and some extra salt and pepper. Lastly, add the juice of 1 lemon and mix gently.
-
Serve into individual portions, and sprinkle a little extra parmesan cheese on top if using.
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