There are only five ingredients in this delicious Sausage Asparagus Pasta Bake. Five! Fresh and healthy asparagus paired with sweet Italian sausage is a great combination. Pick your favorite pasta or use what you have in your pantry. We used whole grain penne pasta for this main dish recipe. (Why? They are the same shape and size as the asparagus.) All you do is prepare, stir, top with cheese and bake. Hearty, saucy and yummy!
Sausage Asparagus Pasta Bake was a good idea.
What to cook for dinner…my daily puzzle.
Do you ever catch yourself mentally looking in your refrigerator? You know, while you are at your desk at work. Or driving down the road on the way home?
That’s me. Taking inventory from memory. Pairing this with that in my imagination and hoping the final result will be tasty.
This creation worked!!
Bright green asparagus, steamed and chopped, were a perfect addition to the whole grain penne pasta.
We simply broke off the tough ends of the asparagus and cut them into bite sized pieces. To make them tender and brighten their color, we steamed them in the microwave for a few minutes before adding them to the pasta.
You can totally use anything you have on hand. Linguine, spaghetti, bowtie…all would be great to use in this asparagus pasta dish. Just toss it all together in your favorite baking dish. Like this one from Rachael Ray.
Sweet Italian sausage is one of my favorite pork products to use. Salty and mild, perfectly savory, they are wonderful on sandwiches. Great in lasagna. And excellent in our Sausage Asparagus Pasta Bake.
More Recipes You Might Like:
Easy Spaghetti Casserole
Lemon Pepper + Kielbasa
Broccoli Lemon Fettuccine
Bucatini Pasta + Chianti Classico Sauce
Spicy Cajun Pasta
Chimichurri Steak Penne Pasta with Broiled Tomatoes in Marinara
Use your favorite marinara or pasta sauce. You can make your own (try our homemade recipe here). Or, to save time, use store bought. When I made this asparagus pasta bake, I got a little carried away with the sauce. Which worked out because I like my sauce.
**In the recipe, see note to use 2 - 3 cups of sauce. I used 3, but feel free to adjust to your own sauciness-scale. 🙂
Top with chunks of fresh whole milk mozzarella. Then bake until bubbly and golden brown.
Your family and friends will love this recipe! Perfect with bread and a side salad.
Sausage Asparagus Pasta Bake
Ingredients
- 2 cups dry whole grain penne pasta
- 1 lb asparagus
- 1 lb sweet Italian sausage
- 2 to 3 cups marinara sauce
- ½ lb fresh mozzarella
- **Fresh thyme optional
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Spray an 8x11 baking dish with non stick spray and set aside.
- Cook penne pasta according to package directions for al dente. Drain and pour into the baking dish.
- While the pasta is cooking, wash the asparagus and break off the tough woody ends. (You can gently bend them and they will break at the right spot.) Then chop the asparagus into bite sized pieces, about 1 inch. Place into a shallow dish with a little water. Microwave on high for 3 minutes. Drain and add to the baking dish.
- Cook sausage links until no longer pink in the center. Slice into bite sized pieces. Add to the baking dish.
- Pour the sauce on top of all ingredients and stir to combine well. Tear the mozzarella into chunks and place on top.
- Bake uncovered for 30 minutes, until heated through and the cheese is melted and bubbly.
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