Recipe: Cheesy Sausage & Spinach Penne

 I LOVE recipes. I LOVE cookbooks, and I LOVE spending LOTS of time online looking for recipes. There are so many out there. 


I found this recipe a few weeks ago over at The Pursuit of Happiness. She has some yummy recipes and fun crafts. I LOVE pasta, I LOVE cheese, I LOVE spinach, so I knew I had to try this recipe! It is an ideal recipe for guests, served with crusty bread and a salad.

Ingredients:

• 1 lb. Italian sausages (take out of casing), I bought a 1lb pack of ground turkey sausage
• 1/2 c. chopped onion
• 4 cloves garlic, minced
• 24 oz. can of diced, peeled tomatoes
• 2/3 c. pesto
• salt and pepper
• 10oz. cooked ziti (I used whole wheat)
• 4 c. chopped fresh spinach
• 8 oz. shredded mozzarella cheese
• 1 c, grated parmesan

In a large pan, cook sausage, onion and garlic until sausage is cooked through.

Add tomatoes with juices and simmer until sauce thickens slightly. Stir occasionally, for about 10 minutes.

 Add pesto. Season sauce with salt and pepper.

 Preheat oven to 375 F. Lightly grease 13 x 9 baking dish.

In a large bowl, mix pasta, spinach, mozzarella and 1/3 c. parmesan cheese. Add in warm tomato mixture.

Pour into baking dish and top with remaining 2/3 c. parmesan cheee. 

Bake until sauce bubbles and cheeses melt, about 20-25 minutes 

I am linking this to Cooking Thursday over at Diary of a Stay at Home Mom.

With Joy UNquenchable,