Try this flavorful Lemony Italian Sausage Pasta recipe! It is also garlicky, and loaded with savory turkey sausage! It's a simple pasta dish that would be perfect for any weeknight dinner. Just pop the leftovers in the fridge or freezer, and you will have a quick meal ready for lunch!
This Lemony Italian Sausage Pasta comes together in no time. It's quick, easy, and uses minimal ingredients.
Easy Ingredients:
To make this Lemony Italian Sausage Pasta dish, you will need the following ingredients; sweet Italian turkey sausage, kale, farfalle pasta, olive oil, garlic, red chili pepper flakes, Italian seasoning, fresh lemon, parmesan cheese, salt, and pepper.
Farfalle pasta is a bow-tie or butterfly-shaped Italian pasta. This type of pasta is commonly served with creamy sauces, tomato sauces, or simple oil-based sauces but also works well in soups and salads. Farfalle pasta usually takes around 7-10 minutes to cook through once the water reaches a boil.
If you don't have farfalle you can substitute with fusilli or conchiglie.
Sweet Italian turkey sausage works great in pasta. If you are not a big fan of turkey meat, feel free to substitute it with pork, or chicken sausage according to your liking.
Italian seasoning is usually made from a combination of marjoram, thyme, rosemary, sage, oregano, and basil. So, if you don’t have any Italian seasoning in your pantry, feel free to substitute with any of these spice combinations.
Now let’s talk about the preparation and cooking process.
How to Cook This Easy Pasta Dish:
This Lemony Italian Sausage Pasta recipe requires a small amount of preparation. You just need to cut the kale into small pieces, chop the garlic, and squeeze a lemon.
The cooking process of this pasta dish is pretty easy and here are some important steps to follow:
- First, cook the pasta in salted boiling water until al dente. It usually takes about 7-10 minutes of cooking time.
- Second, blanch kale.
- Third, brown the sausage.
- Next, sauté the garlic, add the seasonings and browned turkey sausage.
- After that, add the blanched kale, pasta, reserved cooking pasta, and fresh lemon juice.
- Sprinkle with cheese and serve immediately.
CHECK OUT MORE PASTA RECIPES:
- ONE-POT PENNE PASTA
- CANNED TUNA PASTA
- WHITE SAUCE PASTA
- GARLIC BUTTER SHRIMP SCAMPI
- FETTUCCINE ALFREDO WITH CHICKEN SAUSAGE AND KALE
- BRATWURST PASTA RECIPE (IN A BUTTERY BEER SAUCE)
- INSTANT POT PENNE PASTA
Storing the Leftover Pasta:
You can store the leftover in a shallow airtight container, properly stores, it will last 3-4 days in the fridge or 1-2 months in the freezer.
📖 Recipe
Lemony Italian Sausage Pasta
Ingredients
- ½ pound Sweet Italian turkey sausage
- 1 bunch kale, (cut into small pieces)
- 2 cups uncooked farfalle pasta
- 4 tablespoon olive oil , (divided)
- 5 garlic cloves, (sliced)
- 1 teaspoon dried red chili pepper flakes, (add more according to your liking)
- 1 teaspoon Italian Seasoning
- ½ fresh lemon, (juiced, use more according to your liking)
- salt/pepper , (to taste)
To Serve:
- parmesan cheese, (as needed)
Instructions
- Cook the Pasta until Al Dente: Cook pasta in salted boiling water, uncovered until al dente. Remove from the heat, drain well, and reserve ¼ cup pasta cooking water for later use.
- Blanch kale in salted boiling water, uncovered for about 2 minutes. Remove the kale from the heat then transfer to a bowl of cold water to stop the cooking, and drain.
- Brown the Sausage: Heat about 2 tablespoons of olive oil in a skillet over moderate-high heat then cook sausage, use a spoon to break any lumps, and continue to cook until browned for about 7 minutes. Remove from the skillet and set aside.
- Sauté the Garlic: Add 2 tablespoons olive oil in a skillet, stir in garlic, saute until it’s fragrant.
- Add the Seasonings: Add red chili pepper, Italian Seasoning, and cooked turkey sausage. Keep stirring for about 1 minute.
- Add kale, pasta, and ¼ cup reserved cooking water and lemon juice to skillet. Cook and stir for about 2-3 minutes.
- Season with salt/pepper to taste. Remove from the heat.
- Stir in some parmesan cheese, serve and enjoy!
Jacqui S
I keep seeing delish looking meals with kale and have yet to try it. I don't know why I'm waiting! lol. Thanks for sharing!
Valerie Gray (@valmg)
We're big fans of sweet Italian sausage with pasta. I'm not sure if hubby likes kale or not, I don't particularly so I don't buy it.
Terri Ramsey Beavers
That looks so good. I just bought some Italian sausage and am on a hunt for a recipe. I am going to try yours, it looks and sounds amazing.
Jenn @ EngineerMommy
Oooh, I love pasta with sausage inside.This recipe looks and sounds so delicious. I would love to try this recipe this weekend. It would be perfect for dinner!
Shannon Graham
My friend is obsessed with kale. I've never seen her make or try something like this before though so I'll have to share the recipe with her!
Bonnie Gowen
That looks really good. I will have to try this really soon. I think we would all like it.
Rose's Daughter
Ohh this looks really good!! I love anything with sausage so I know this is delicious!
Tia
This was phenomenal. The only thing I did differently was I used fresh green cabbage instead of kale because it’s what I had on hand. I blanched it in a little concentrated chicken broth and instead of the water reserve from the pasta, I used reserve from my cabbage (I miss read the instructions). But other than that, followed the recipe to a T. My cabbage was crisp and crunchy and the chicken stock just popped the flavor of this entire dish to heaven in my mouth. Loved it. Will definitely make again.
Rika
Hi Tia,
I appreciate the comment! I'm a huge fan of cabbage, I think I'll actually try substituting cabbage next time around. Love the tip about the concentrated chicken broth, thank you!
Best,
Rika