Last week, I posted one of my favorite meal subscription recipes and told you about another recipe from the same service that I absolutely loved. Like, ate this Italian Sausage and Zucchini Linguine for breakfast, lunch, dinner, and a late night snack loved (not all the same day…I’m not that intense. Incidentally, the morning I had it for breakfast, I had the most incredible workout a couple of hours later. Best workout fuel ever.)
I was going to wait a couple of weeks to post it, but I found myself wanting it again, then my kids started asking for it and I just decided that I needed to share it now. So I’m sharing it, even though I only made it a couple of weeks ago. The ingredients are simple and it comes together quickly, but don’t let the simplicity fool you–it’s also incredibly delicious.
You’ll need 2 medium zucchini, a medium onion, 4-6 cloves of garlic, a couple of lemons, some Italian sausage (if you can get a great local or specialty brand, go for it–the better the sausage, the better the meal!), two cans of diced tomatoes, and 12 ounces of linguine.
You’ll also need 2 teaspoons of dry thyme and some red pepper flakes. 1/4 teaspoon will give the dish a nice bite; 1/2 teaspoon will be quite spicy (and you can also add more if you want it to be even hotter.)
Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil.
Wash produce. Cut the ends off the zucchini, quarter lengthwise, then slice crosswise, making triangles. Peel the onion, then cut in half and thinly slice. Peel the garlic and mince or grate. Cut the first lemon in half and the other into quarters. Set the produce aside.
When the water is boiling, add the linguine and cook until al dente, Drain, return to the pan you cooked the pasta in, and toss the cooked pasta in a little extra virgin olive oil to keep it from sticking.
Heat a light drizzle of olive oil over medium heat. Remove the sausage from the casings. Crumble the sausage into the hot skillet and cook 5-7 minutes, stirring frequently, until cooked through and crumbly. Remove the sausage from the pan.
If desired, drain the grease from the pan, then add another large drizzle of extra-virgin olive oil and return the pan to medium heat. Add the sliced onions and zucchini and a sprinkle of salt and pepper. Stir frequently until the onions are tender and fragrant. Add the thyme, red pepper flakes, and garlic and cook for an additional minute. Return the sausage to the pan, then add the diced tomatoes. Simmer for 5-10 minutes. Remove from heat and add the sauce to the pan of cooked pasta. Toss to combine. Squeeze the juice of one of the halved lemon into the pasta. Toss to combine, then season with salt and pepper to taste. Serve with freshly grated parmesan cheese and lemon wedges.
Italian Sausage and Zucchini Linguine
Description
Don’t let the list of simple ingredients fool you–you’ll come back to this meal again and again!
Ingredients
- 2 medium zucchini
- 1 medium red onion
- 4–6 cloves garlic
- 2 lemons
- 16–18 ounces sweet Italian sausage
- 1/4–1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes (1/2 teaspoon will be quite spicy)
- 2 teaspoons dry thyme
- 2 15-ounce cans diced tomatoes
- 12 ounces linguine
- Parmesan cheese for serving
Instructions
- Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil.
- Wash produce. Cut the ends off the zucchini, quarter lengthwise, then slice crosswise, making triangles. Peel the onion, then cut in half and thinly slice. Peel the garlic and mince or grate. Cut the first lemon in half and the other into quarters. Set the produce aside.
- When the water is boiling, add the linguine and cook until al dente, Drain, return to the pan you cooked the pasta in, and toss the cooked pasta in a little extra virgin olive oil to keep it from sticking.
- Heat a light drizzle of olive oil over medium heat. Remove the sausage from the casings. Crumble the sausage into the hot skillet and cook 5-7 minutes, stirring frequently, until cooked through and crumbly. Remove the sausage from the pan.
- If desired, drain the grease from the pan, then add another large drizzle of extra-virgin olive oil and return the pan to medium heat. Add the sliced onions and zucchini and a sprinkle of salt and pepper. Stir frequently until the onions are tender and fragrant. Add the thyme, red pepper flakes, and garlic and cook for an additional minute. Return the sausage to the pan, then add the diced tomatoes. Simmer for 5-10 minutes. Remove from heat and add the sauce to the pan of cooked pasta. Toss to combine. Squeeze the juice of one of the halved lemon into the pasta. Toss to combine, then season with salt and pepper to taste. Serve with freshly grated parmesan cheese and lemon wedges.
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 6
Questions & Reviews
We are trying to eat more vegetarian these days so can I just omit the sausage?
Sure!! I would maybe add in some of the flavors you’d get from the sausage, and maybe add some mushrooms or extra zucchini or other bulky veggies to round things out, but it should be good! 🙂
I made this last night and it was so so so good. I used ground spicy Italian sausage instead of sweet for some extra heat. My husband and I both loved it. Had leftovers for lunch today. Thank you for sharing!
Made this last night (added mushrooms) and my man of few words had a heaping bowl of seconds so I’m counting it a huge success. And it’s easy!
This looks so good! I love pasta with sausage and veggies in it. I could seriously eat it every night!
Do you think this would be good with zucchini noodles instead of the linguini?
For sure! Or you could do half and half. Or spaghetti squash. Lots of options! 🙂
I have all of these ingredients!!! I’m making this tonight!
Yum! I’ve made a version of this with the chicken sausages from Costco that Sara likes. I will defiantly try this soon. Thanks!
This looks delicious! Here in San Diego, we have Sprouts Farmer’s Markets and they make their own chicken sausages and pork sausages (fresh, minus any nitrates, etc.) and it’s pretty tasty. You can get them in its casing or in bulk. This dish would be perfect for the spicy chicken sausages! I can’t wait to try it. Question: Any reason why you used a red onion versus a regular brown or sweet onion?
Nope–whatever you prefer! 🙂
Sprouts is the BOMB (shout out from here in AZ)
This looks amazing! I have kids that think I’m trying to poison them if I serve zucchini or tomatoes that are chunky, but maybe I can make this for my husband and myself and the kids can have spaghetti sauce on their linguine. Or I might try pureeing theirs so they can’t see what’s in it. Either way, I’m pretty sure I NEED this for dinner soon!
Looks delicious! I think my husband would eat pasta with sausage every night if I made it – looks like a good way to get some more veggies in!
Yum! This looks like such a yummy, quick and easy weeknight meal!
Paige
http://thehappyflammily.com
I’m not seeing where both lemons are used. Just the juice from one half.
Serve the wedges on the side–sorry, I’ll fix that! 🙂