I really enjoy chicken sausage and my local health food store carries it in various flavors.  I wait for it to go on sale and buy in bulk and last week was my opportunity.  I bought hot chicken sausage, apple chicken sausage as well as basil chicken sausage which I used for thisrecipe.  We both enjoy casserole style meals as they are usually easy to put together and offer lots of leftovers.  When I searched myrecipes.com with these two factors in mind, this popped up and sounded good so I decided to give it a try.

 

Cooking Light, JANUARY 2005
Yield:8 servings (serving size: 1 1/2 cups)

 

Ingredients

  • 1  pound  uncooked penne (tube-shaped pasta)
  • 1  tablespoon  olive oil
  • 1 1/2  cups  chopped onion
  • 3/4  cup  chopped red bell pepper
  • 1  (12-ounce) package sweet basil and pine nut chicken sausage (such as Gerhard’s), halved lengthwise and cut crosswise into 1/2-inch-thick slices
  • 2  garlic cloves, minced
  • 1  tablespoon  tomato paste
  • 1  tablespoon  balsamic vinegar
  • 1/2  teaspoon  salt
  • 1/4  teaspoon  dried oregano
  • 1/4  teaspoon  crushed red pepper
  • 3  (14.5-ounce) cans diced tomatoes, undrained
  • Cooking spray
  • 1  cup  (4 ounces) shredded sharp provolone cheese
  • 1  cup  (4 ounces) grated fresh Parmesan cheese

Preparation

Cook pasta according to package directions, omitting salt and fat.

Preheat oven to 350°.

Heat olive oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add onion, bell pepper, sausage, and garlic; sauté 5 minutes or until sausage is browned. Add tomato paste and next 5 ingredients (through diced tomatoes); cover, reduce heat, and simmer 15 minutes.

Combine pasta and tomato mixture; spoon into a 13 x 9-inch baking dish coated with cooking spray. Sprinkle with cheeses. Bake at 350° for 25 minutes or until bubbly.

Nutritional Information

Calories:453 (30% from fat)
Fat:15.3g (sat 6.6g,mono 5.7g,poly 2.1g)
Protein:24.4g
Carbohydrate:55.3g
Fiber:4.6g
Cholesterol:56mg
Iron:2.1mg
Sodium:954mg
Calcium:319mg
Notes:

I purchased my chicken sausage in 1 lb. packets, so I went ahead and used the entire pound so it didn’t go to waste –  an additional 4 oz. than the recipe calls for, so that certainly upped the calories (eh…I’m okay with that).  I also opted for monterey jack cheese in lieu of provolone since its what I had on hand and is similar in texture/flavor in my book.  I also had a bunch of tomatoes that were starting to turn, so I used that in lieu of one of the cans of diced tomatoes.  For the two remaining cans I used plain diced tomatoes although I’m sure the basil or garlic flavored variety would be exceptional in this recipe.

Prior to adding cheese...looks bland but flavors really do meld together well!

 
Verdict:

When I first put all the ingredients in the casserole, I was concerned that it looked awfully bland.  I was concerned that there was too little sauciness to it.  After first bite, I was slightly disappointed and longed for some hearty tomato sauce to put on top.  However, as I continued to eat and as it cooled down, I really enjoyed the flavors coming together – it was in fact quite good!  We made a salad chock full of veggies and that combined with the casserole left me thoroughly satiated.  My husband on the other hand went back for a second helping and found that it was that much more flavorful with more cooling time.  That being said, I suggest you refrain from being chow hounds like us and allow it to cool for a good 15 minutes – it’ll be worth the wait.

Overall, very happy with how this simple recipe turned out and will definitely add this to our rotation.