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Cozy, comforting, and flavor-packed, this creamy sausage pasta is one you’ll be making on repeat! With sausage, sun-dried tomatoes, and lots of yummy seasonings, you can make this one-dish meal in less than 45 minutes!
If you’ve ever had creamy chicken skillet (marry me chicken), you might already be a fan of the star ingredient in this delicious pasta dish.
This recipe was inspired by a jar of sun-dried tomatoes in my pantry.
It had been sitting there for a while, and I just couldn’t place why I had it or what recipe I was planning to make with it. I mean, it’s just not one of those ingredients I keep on hand.
Anyway, I was wanting to make a pasta one evening, and at the last minute decided to throw in the tomatoes, and my oh my! It just changed the whole dish with one small ingredient! Who knew!
As you can imagine, sun-dried tomatoes are now something I keep stocked in the pantry!
Over the next few weeks, I experimented with a few different pasta styles until I landed on this one here. I hope you love it.
Table of Contents
Why You’ll Love This Recipe
- One-dish meal: Keep your dinner simple tonight — this pasta dish doesn’t need any sides to make it a well-balanced and delicious meal!
- Creamy and flavorful: This cream-based sauce has just the right amount of richness. The seasonings, sun-dried tomatoes, bell peppers, and onions give it so much depth of flavor.
- Easy: Creamy sausage pasta comes together in less than 45 minutes with simple ingredients. It’s the easiest dish for beginners and busy home cooks.
- Crowd-pleaser: My whole family was asking for seconds when I tested this recipe, and they’ve since requested it for dinner again!
Ingredients
- Ground pork: I used unseasoned ground pork and added my own seasoning, but pre-seasoned Italian sausage works great too (see the notes for more details).
- Pasta: I like penne for this recipe. You could also use farfalle, cavatappi, or shells.
- Sun-dried tomatoes: These are a must! They add so much tangy, rich flavor that really makes this pasta dish pop.
The full list of ingredients with their measurements can be found in the recipe card below!
How to Make Creamy Sausage Pasta
Step 1. Cook the penne in salted water according to the package directions. Drain it and return it to the pot. Stir in the cream cheese and sun-dried tomatoes until the cream cheese melts into the pasta.
Step 2. Brown the ground pork in a 12-inch skillet over medium heat, breaking it up as it cooks. Add the onion and bell pepper and cook until the sausage is done and the vegetables are soft.
Step 3. Stir in the seasonings, and then add the now-seasoned sausage and vegetables to the pasta.
Step 4. Add the heavy cream and simmer for 15 minutes, stirring now and then, until the sauce thickens.
Tips + Notes
- In this recipe, I am using unseasoned ground pork and adding my own seasonings to make the sausage. If you have seasoned sausage already, do not use the salt, pepper, fennel, or sage in the ingredients above.
- For the sun-dried tomatoes, I don’t drain them. They are fine saturated, so don’t go out of the way to get the oil off.
- Leftovers keep for 4 days. Reheat them low and slow with a splash of cream or milk, and stir often to keep it from sticking to the bottom or burning.
- Err on the side of undercooked/al dente when cooking the noodles. They will continue to soften as they cook in the sauce.
Best Sides for Creamy Sausage Pasta
This truly is a one-dish meal, so sides are not required! Still, if you’re feeling ambitious or want to stretch the meal a little, you can never go wrong with a little variety on the table.
You can choose a vegetable side dish, bread, or a fun appetizer to complete this meal! Here are a few of my best recommendations:
- Easy Balsamic Bruschetta
- Garden Herb Focaccia with Freshly Ground Flour
- Cast Iron Skillet Green Beans
- Cast Iron Roasted Glazed Carrots
- Garlic Parmesan Brussel Sprouts
- Whole Wheat Mozzarella Cheese Balls
Recipe FAQs
Of course! You can substitute anything you’d like — my suggestions would be sliced andouille or kielbasa, cooked shrimp, or chicken. The flavor will be different, of course, but still tasty and filling.
I wouldn’t recommend freezing this dish. The noodles can get soggy, and the sauce can separate in the freezer. It does save in the fridge and reheat well, so you can always make this pasta at the beginning of the week for meal prep!
Absolutely! If you want to make homemade noodles, they are never a bad addition to a meal. You might like my homemade whole wheat pasta recipe!
Related Recipes
- Garlic Butter Shrimp Pasta
- One Pan Chicken Alfredo
- Chicken Pesto Pasta Bake
- Easy Cajun Chicken Pasta
- The Best Venison Pasta Recipe
If you tried this Creamy Sausage Pasta or any other recipe on my website, please leave a star rating and let me know how it went in the comments below. Thanks for visiting!
Creamy Sausage Pasta
Equipment
- 12-inch cast iron skillet
- Large pot
Ingredients
- 1 pound ground pork see notes*
- 1 onion diced
- 1 bell pepper diced
- 4 ounces sun-dried tomatoes chopped
- 8 ounces cream cheese
- 1/2 cup heavy cream
- 1 box penne pasta (16 ounces)
- 1 teaspoon Italian seasoning
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 teaspoon black pepper
- 1/2 teaspoon crushed fennel seeds
- 1/2 teaspoon rubbed sage
Instructions
- Cook the penne in salted water according to the package directions. Drain it and return it to the pot. Stir in the cream cheese and sun-dried tomatoes until the cream cheese melts into the pasta.
- Brown the ground pork in a 12-inch skillet over medium heat, breaking it up as it cooks. Add the onion and bell pepper and cook until the sausage is done and the vegetables are soft.
- Stir in the seasonings, and then add the now-seasoned sausage and vegetables to the pasta.
- Add the heavy cream and simmer for 15 minutes, stirring now and then, until the sauce thickens.
Notes
- In this recipe, I am using unseasoned ground pork and adding my own seasonings to make the sausage. If you have seasoned sausage already, do not use the salt, pepper, fennel, or sage in the ingredients above.
- For the sun-dried tomatoes, I don’t drain them. They are fine saturated, so don’t go out of the way to get the oil off.
- Leftovers keep for 4 days. Reheat them low and slow with a splash of cream or milk, and stir often to keep it from sticking to the bottom or burning.
- Err on the side of undercooked/al dente when cooking the noodles. They will continue to soften as they cook in the sauce.
