Hello! Hope you had a nice weekend!
Ben and I kicked Friday night off with date night downtown, which started with drinks and ended with cake (how bad could that be?) Flourless chocolate cake from Cafe di Scala, to be exact. This sweet slice, complete with a birthday candle as Ben kept accidentally blowing out our romantic tabletop candle (sheesh!) was so dense and fudgy that it tasted like chocolate truffles in cake form. Wow, wow, wow!
We’ve been wanting to eat at the southern Italian eatery located in an incredibly romantic, old Victorian mansion for years, and I’m so glad we finally went. Every single thing we ordered, from bolognese sauce over baked polenta, to homemade sweet squash stuffed pasta with brown butter, was absolutely mouthwatering. Locals: this is a must try. I’m embarrassed that it took us this long to go!
The rest of the weekend could not have been more beautiful, so my Mom and I headed to the farmers’ market bright and early on Saturday morning. The air was crisp and the sun was shining – it really (finally!) felt like fall.
I left the little man at home to hang with Dad so we could take our time strolling the streets, and savoring every last cheesy morsel of our Pupusa, which was epic, btw.
Festive and unique pumpkins were in abundance this weekend…
And apples, too. I stocked up on a ton from my friends at Berry Patch Farms, who also come to the market every week. Their Honeycrisps are sweet and snappy – just the way I like ’em!
I spent the rest of the day running errands, so I made sure to slow it down on Sunday and spend lots of time with this little guy. Heart. Breaker.
Lincoln is in a fun phase right now. He’s quite the chatterbox, but loves to snuggle too. I don’t know what I love more – listening to him tell me about his dreams, or cuddling after he wakes up from them. Decisions, decisions! ; )
Yesterday I also tossed a few of my farmers’ market finds together with some fridge and pantry staples and whipped up Sweet Apple Chicken Sausage Pasta for lunch!
This dish is easy, nutritious, and full of yummy flavors – plus it can easily be made gluten-free. Cooked pasta is tossed with sauteed Sweet Apple Chicken Sausage, fresh apple, spinach, and white beans to create a quick and hearty meal that’s ready in about 20 minutes. No kidding!
Start by cooking 1lb gluten-free or regular gemelli pasta (or any short cut pasta) in a big pot of salted, boiling water until al dente. Before draining, remove 1/2 cup of the pasta cooking water and set it aside. FYI this recipe makes a TON of food, but is very easily halved!
The star of this dish are these gluten-free Sweet Apple Chicken Sausages I found at the grocery store last week. I wasn’t quite sure what I was going to do with them, but one look at the flavor combo, which includes maple syrup, had me hook, line, and sinker. If you can’t find this exact brand, just look for something similar.
Slice up the sausage along with 1 sweet apple (I used a Honeycrisp,) 1 large shallot, and 4 cloves garlic.
Heat 4 Tablespoons extra virgin olive oil in a very large skillet over medium-high heat then add the shallots and sausage and saute until golden brown, about 3 minutes. Next add the apple and garlic, along with a pinch of red chili pepper flakes, and saute until the apple is tender, about 5 minutes.
The red chili pepper flakes are optional, but I think they add a nice flavor contrast to the maple syrup and sweet bites of apple in the pasta!
Next add a 15oz can Great Northern Beans that have been drained and rinsed. Great northern beans are soft so when they’re tossed into the mix they lend a creamy consistency to the sauce. Fiber, vitamins, and minerals, too!
Finally add 6oz baby spinach and 1 cup chicken broth. Toss the spinach with tongs until it’s wilted, about 1 minute.
Add the mixture into the pot with the drained pasta then stir together with 1/3 cup fresh grated parmesan cheese, and enough of the pasta cooking water to keep the pasta nice and creamy.
Scoop onto plates, top with more parmesan cheese, if you please, then serve!
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Sweet Apple Chicken Sausage Pasta
Description
Sweet Apple Chicken Sausage Pasta is nutritious, gluten-free adaptable, and ready in about 20 minutes!
Ingredients
- 1lb gluten-free or regular gemelli or other short cut pasta
- 4 Tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
- 1 large shallot or 1 small onion, chopped
- 12oz Sweet-Apple Chicken Sausage, sliced
- 1 apple, peeled then chopped
- 4 cloves garlic, minced
- pinch red chili pepper flakes
- salt and pepper
- 15oz can Great Northern Beans, drained and rinsed
- 6oz baby spinach
- 1 cup chicken broth
- 1/3 cup freshly grated parmesan cheese
Directions
- Cook pasta in a large pot of salted boiling water until al dente. Reserve 1/2 cup pasta cooking water then drain and set aside.
- Meanwhile, heat extra virgin olive oil in a very large skillet over medium-high heat. Add shallots and sausage then saute until sausage is golden brown, about 3 minutes. Add apple, garlic, and red chili pepper flakes, season with salt and pepper, and then saute until apple is tender, about 5 minutes. Add chicken broth, beans, and spinach then toss with tongs until spinach is wilted, about 1 minute.
- Pour sausage and apple mixture into pot with pasta then add parmesan cheese. Stir until combined, adding reserved pasta cooking water to reach desired consistency.
This recipe is courtesy of Iowa Girl Eats, http://iowagirleats.com.
I am pumped for leftovers of this pasta! The sweet bites of fresh apple are divine with the maple syrup-laced chicken sausage, but the dish is brought back to the savory side with lots of garlic, chicken broth, and warmth from the red chili pepper flakes. Hope you enjoy this dish – and have a great week!
This looks great! Good timing, I just bought chicken apple sausage at the store yesterday :)
I love that you include pictures of all of the steps – it makes it so easy to follow along. Love this apple sausage pasta recipe! Thanks for sharing :)
I love authentic Italian food so much better than the chain places. Nice you can still get out with the little one at home.
This is exactly the recipe I am looking for! I just bought chicken apple sausage too :)
The pasta sounds great. Can’t get enough apple this time of year!
this looks amazing, and if i was not on a whole foods sugar detox for a week, i’d make it tonight.
I’m always weirded out about fruit in my savory dishes but you’ve sold me on this one. I’m tempted to ditch my other plans and go with this one. I’m also planning on making your salmon salad with honey-apple cider vinaigrette. So excited!
Lincoln is TOO CUTE!!!
That is my kind of pasta meal! I just picked up a bag of apples at my farmers’ market. They will be just perfect in this dish.
Yes please!! Trying this soon.
I think Lincoln gets cuter every time you share a picture. Gah! That face. How are you ever going to say no to that?!
That cake looked ah-mazing! Yum.
This pasta also looks delicious. I love that you added beans for an extra kick of nutrition.
Love the use of beans in pasta…I’ve never tried it before, but am interested to do so!
I had the most delicious butternut squash bisque there once. It was like sunshine in a bowl, which I’ve never been able to replicate. Mmmm…. hungry.
Oh man this looks sooooo good! I love chicken apple sausage and love the sweet and savory combo!
What a fun weekend you had! I am a huge fan of Chicken Sausage. Congrats on your BHG feature!
What a cute little boy, love this smile!
This dish sounds like the perfect week night dinner that’s fast and delicious! :)
This looks SO good! My husband & I are big fans of that particular Al Fresco sausage. It’s good stuff!
Interesting!
In your photos you don’t mention the chicken broth, would I use it in lieu of the pasta water?
In super excited to make this tomorrow night! :-D
Could Lincoln be any cuter?! I totally sound like Chandler there from Friends but you know what I mean!
And I’m totally loving this pasta. Chicken sausage has quickly become one of my favorites!
What a great fall dinner. My husband will only eat black beans unless I sneak some into dishes like this. Love it!
I am looking forward to trying this. I still have some Swiss chard in the garden. Do you think I could use that for my leafy greens?
I use apple chicken sausage as a side with pumpkin waffles & homemade chunky applesauce, so I often have it on hand.
Sure! I’ve never cooked with swiss chard but believe it’s similar to kale. That being said, I might saute it with the sausage/apples to make sure it’s tender enough instead of only giving it a minute or two to wilt with the chicken broth.
I use these sausages all the time! So easy, fairly healthy, and taste delish!! This combination is awesome – reminds me a bit of the sausage apple quinoa salad that you made a few weeks ago (which I made and devoured for lunch many days). Love these easy fall recipes!
PS: Lincoln is adorable!
Made this last night and it was amazing! I’m normally not into sweets in my savory but it balanced very nicely and even my picky husband loved it. Thanks for the recipe :)
Btw your little man is adorable!!
The little guy is so stinkin cute!!!
Trader Joes makes the sweet apple chicken sausage too. I like to just cook them and throw them on a hot dog bun with sauerkraut and a little dijon mustard. With a side of veggies, easy dinner! :)
Made this last night for my fiance’……and it was a HIT! Thank you so much for breaking each step down with Pics!!!!
We made this last night and it is a new favorite. Love love love that sausage and all the ingredients you paired it with. Apples, garlic, shallot, spinach — my favorite things! No wonder we loved this one. Super easy way to make a ton of food, too.
Just wanted to pop in and say that I made this recipe and LOVED it! Such a great combination of flavors and super easy to make too. I made the full recipe and was happily eating leftovers all week. Nom, nom, nom. :) I will definitely be making this one again!
[…] stuck with making my own dinner most nights, which is why a pasta recipe like this one from Iowa Girls Eats is so handy to have around! This Sweet Apple Chicken Sausage dish is packed with great flavor and […]
[…] Sweet Apple Chicken Sausage Pasta, Iowa Girl Eats […]
[…] Chicken apple sausage pasta – If your weekday dinners have fallen into a rut, you might want to try this super quick and easy recipe. It comes from Kristen at Iowagirleats.com. I pinned it several months ago and have been making it consistently since then. It’s fabulous for busy soccer nights because it comes together quickly and cleanup is a snap! I always sub in a whole wheat pasta with delicious results. […]
[…] Sweet Apple Chicken Sausage Pasta […]
This was such a hit with my picky husband! So glad you posted this again last week :)
Thanks for posting this recipe. It was absolutely delicious!
Very good recipe! I found your blog looking for recipes to use up some apple sausage that I have in the fridge. I just used leftover spaghetti noodles and left out the apple (I didn’t have any on hand). This was a super easy and delicious lunch for me and my mom :)
[…] Sweet Apple Chicken Sausage Pasta adapted from iowagirleats […]
Great recipe! Kids and adults all enjoyed. I too had chicken apple sausage in the fridge and was completely uninspired….google led me to you. Thanks!
Just made this tonight but added my own twist! Decided to add mushrooms and kale instead of spinach. Also no beans.
The beans add such a nice, creamy consistency – I’ve made this twice so far and its awesome – thanks for the recipe!
This was delicious! Thanks for sharing.
My husband made this last night… It was a hit, happy to pin it!
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The recipe was good but I personally didn’t like the apple chicken sausage. I do however love the feta and spinach chicken sausage. I will not use this recipe again however. Too many great tasting alternatives.
[…] Chicken sausage pasta […]
Just found your site while searching for a way to use up some apple sausage. I didn’t have an apple and used some mixed greens with spinach, chard, kale and arugula in place of the spinach. I also only used half the pasta because it seemed like a better proportion. It was a wonderful dish, hearty but bright in flavor. Thank you!