Smoked Sausage, White Bean and Spinach Pasta with Toasted Pine Nuts

Smoked Sausage, White Bean and Spinach Pasta with Toasted Pine Nuts is the perfect weeknight meal ready in 15 minutes.  The smoked sausage brings a smoky spiced flavor to the dish which means you don’t need extra spices! The healthy spinach, pine nuts and vegetables pair wonderfully to make this pasta dish a family favorite.

We are in the home stretch! Baby should be arriving any day now (fingers crossed) and the nesting has set in big time!  As I near the end of pregnancy I must admit that I am getting uncomfortable. It is getting harder to stand on my feet for long periods of time which of course makes cooking difficult.

Making meals at home for my family remains a priority for me even if I am 9 months pregnant. The easier the recipe the better when your time is limited so the fact today’s recipe for Smoked Sausage, White Bean and Spinach Pasta with Toasted Pine Nuts only takes 15 minutes to cook is music to this mama’s ears!

I partnered with Hillshire Farm to create this dish using their smoked sausage along with some of my family’s favorite flavors and ingredients. We make this dish at least once a month and just love it!

In my opinion sausage works wonderfully in pasta and has always been a favorite of mine, especially with the smoky flavor.  The great thing about using the Hillshire Farm smoked sausage is that it is precooked making the cooking time of this recipe 15 minutes total. This sausage also has a lot of flavor packed in it which means you use less ingredients and spices and still have the same amount of flavor.

Smoked Sausage, White Bean and Spinach Pasta with Toasted Pine Nuts is an easy weeknight meal that you can make for your family and can be adapted to your tastes. In my house we love adding vegetables to pasta dishes (that might be the Mom in me constantly trying to get my toddler to eat his vegetables) so I put cherry tomatoes, zucchini and spinach in. If you don’t have cherry tomatoes on hand feel free to use a can of diced tomatoes. Get creative–so many different veggies would work great in this dish.

I personally love pine nuts, especially when they are toasted, so that was the perfect finishing touch (and they have great health benefits). I have also use walnuts in the dish when I don’t have pine nuts on hand.  Feel free to modify this dish to your family’s tastes and enjoy the wonderful flavor that is ready in just 15 minutes!

Other ideas for this dish include:

• Subbing whole wheat pasta for a healthier dish
• Turkey sausage can work great in this recipe
• Try changing up the beans by using chickpeas or black beans
• Spice this dish up with a variety of spices including paprika, crushed red pepper and cayenne pepper

Julia // A Cedar Spoon

Yields 6

Smoked Sausage, White Bean and Spinach Pasta with Toasted Pine Nuts

Smoked Sausage, White Bean and Spinach Pasta with Toasted Pine Nuts is the perfect weeknight meal ready in 15 minutes. The smoked sausage brings a smoky spiced flavor to the dish which means you don’t need extra spices!

5 minPrep Time

10 minCook Time

15 minTotal Time

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Ingredients

• 1 (14 ounce) package Hillshire Farm® Smoked Sausage , diagonally cut into 1/4” slices
• 2 teaspoons olive oil
• 6 oz bow tie pasta, cooked and drained (or medium sized pasta of your choice)
• 1/4 cup toasted pine nuts
• 1 medium zucchini, sliced into thin rounds
• 1/2 cup vegetable broth
• 1-6oz package of spinach, pre-washed
• 1-15oz can white beans, drained and rinsed
• 1/2 pint cherry tomatoes, sliced in half
• 1 teaspoon dried basil
• 1 teaspoon dried parsley
• 1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
• Salt and pepper to taste

Instructions

1. In a large pot bring water to a boil and cook pasta according to package. Drain and set aside.
2. Heat a dry large skillet over medium-low heat and toast pine nuts, stirring frequently, until pine nuts are golden in spots, about 3 minutes. Remove and set aside.
3. In the same skillet heat 2 tsp. olive oil on medium-high heat and sauté the smoked sausage for 5 minutes, or until golden brown, stirring occasionally. Remove smoked sausage and set aside.
4. Add the zucchini and vegetable broth to the skillet and simmer until zucchini are soft, about 5 minutes. Add spinach, white beans, cherry tomatoes, basil, oregano and parsley and continue to simmer for 2 minutes until spinach is wilted and tomatoes are soft.
5. Turn the heat to low, add the pasta and smoked sausage to the vegetables mixing well to combine and cook for 30 seconds.
6. Garnish with toasted pine nuts, freshly grated parmesan cheese, chopped green onion, fresh parsley and a sprinkle of crushed red pepper.

Recipe Type: Dinner, 15 minutes or less

Notes

I have used other kinds of sausage which work great--try turkey sausage for a healthier option.

Sub whole wheat pasta for regular pasta.

If I don't have cherry tomatoes on hand I use a can of diced tomatoes which works nicely.

You could use winter squash in addition or in place of the zucchini.

Walnuts work great in place of pine nuts.

6.6.15

http://www.acedarspoon.com/smoked-sausage-white-bean-spinach-pasta-toasted-pine-nut/

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Disclosure: Today’s post and recipe is sponsored by Hillshire Farm.  As always my opinions and thoughts are 100% my own. 

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