Sausage Spaghetti

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I don’t know about you, but sometimes I really wonder when we’ll get back to “normal” or what that will even look like. I’m trying to remember to take in the good things when I can.  While I’m unemployed, I’ve been doing more of the cooking and have been enjoying it for the most part.  We’ve always enjoyed good food, but it’s definitely something that’s become a comfort to us around here.  Like everyone else out there, we try to keep our grocery and Costco trips to a minimum.  For us that means we’ve been buying more pantry staples and food that can be frozen.  Sausage is one of those things it’s always handy to have around.  It’s full of flavor and a great addition to many things.  A bonus is that our too skinny toddler also loves sausage, so we’ve been adding it more to our meals.  Needless to say we had sausage in the freezer so I threw this spaghetti dish together and I could not believe how tasty it was!  It’s quickly become one of our favorite so it’s in our rotation 1-2 times per month.

Let’s get to it!

Start by getting a large pot of salted water going for cooking the spaghetti.  In the meantime, put a large skillet over medium heat.  The pasta is going to be added to this later, so make sure it’s large enough to hold sauce and spaghetti.  

Crumble in the sausage and add the chopped onion.  I like the flavor of Jimmy Dean regular pork sausage, but use whatever you like.

Cook the sausage and onion until the sausage is no longer pink. 

Now add the tomato paste and stir it until it’s evenly distributed.  Tomato paste is another great thing to have on hand in your pantry or fridge. It is filled with umami and adds a punch of flavor to your dishes.  I like getting the tubes because you can use smaller amounts, rather than opening a whole can and wasting a bunch. 

Once the tomato paste is mixed in, add the red wine. You can leave this out if you don’t have any or just don’t like wine.  I feel like it adds another layer of flavor (and let’s be honest, don’t many of us have a bottle of wine open already anyway, lol).

Let that cook for a minute and then add the marinara sauce and the herbs.  I like to use oregano and marjoram, but really any Italian herbs you have on hand will be great here (or an Italian seasoning mix).  

Now let that simmer to thicken a bit and develop the flavors.  Time for the pasta!  Add the spaghetti to your boiling water and follow the package instructions to cook until al dente.

Drain the pasta and save 1 cup of the pasta water. Taste your sauce and make any adjustments, like adding salt if it’s needed. 

Now add the cooked pasta and stir it all together until the pasta is evenly coated in sauce.  If you want it a little more saucy, add some of the pasta cooking liquid. 

 

Serve hot with parmesan on top if you’d like. 

You guys this pasta is so good!  Sometimes I’ll even eat leftovers cold, it’s that good!  It makes a pretty large batch so you’ll have leftovers for several days if not feeding a crowd.  When storing your leftovers, add a little bit of the pasta water because some of the sauce will be soaked up by the noodles.  The extra pasta water will help prevent it from getting too dry.

Enjoy!