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Creamed Spinach Pasta with Sausage and Pine Nuts

  • Author: Joy the Baker
  • Prep Time: 15
  • Cook Time: 15
  • Total Time: 30 minutes

Ingredients

Scale
  • 3/4 cup whole milk ricotta cheese
  • Kosher salt
  • Fresh ground black pepper
  • 1 tablespoon olive oil.
  • 1 pound sweet Italian sausage
  • 1 pound fettuccine pasta
  • 1/2 cup pine nuts
  • 4 tablespoons unsalted butter
  • 2 cloves garlic, thinly sliced
  • 1 pound baby spinach leaves
  • 1 cup heavy cream
  • freshly grated nutmeg
  • grated Parmesan cheese

Instructions

  1. In a large bowl, combine ricotta cheese with a good pinch or two of salt and a few good grinds of black pepper.
  2. Add olive oil to a medium skillet over medium heat. Add 1 pound of uncased Italian sausage to the pan and use the back of a spoon to break up the sausage as it cooks. Cook to a crisp, sizzling brown. Remove from heat, place the browned meat into a small bowl and wipe the pan with a paper towel.
  3. Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Add a tablespoon or two of kosher salt to the water. Add the pasta and cool to al dente. Drain the pasta, reserving about 1/2 cup of pasta water, and let it rest in the sink.
  4. While the pasta cooks, heat the empty sausage pan over medium heat. Add the toasted pine nuts and stir around the hot pan until the nuts begin to toast and brown making sure the nuts don’t burn. Remove from the pan and place in a small bowl.
  5. In the same pan over medium heat, melt butter. Add the garlic and saute until golden, about 2 minutes. Season with salt, pepper, and nutmeg. Add the spinach and cook until the spinach wilts down, about 4 minutes.
  6. Add the cream and bring to a simmer. Cook until the sauce thicken slightly, about 2 minutes. Taste and season with salt and pepper if needed.
  7. Add the pasta to the garlic cream skillet and splash with some of the reserved pasta water. Toss with tongs to combine.
  8. Add the spinach and pasta mixture directly into the bowl of seasoned ricotta, off the heat. Toss to combine, adding a bit more pasta water as necessary to loosen the sauce. Don’t incorporate the ricotta too much, leaving large streaks and chunks.
  9. Plate in large bowls. Sprinkle generously with pine nuts. Add Parmesan cheese and enjoy warm.


Nutrition

  • Serving Size: 4