Spicy Sausage Pasta

Hey there! Back with another recipe. I know I don't get to post as often as I'd like, and my blog was never meant to be a 'food' blog, but it seems that's what I end up posting about these days. Anyway, I stumbled across a recipe on Pinterest the other night called Spicy Sausage Pasta. I thought, "Man, that looks good!" The pictures looked great. I kept looking at the ingredients and wondering how I felt about it. I decided last night that I was going to make it tonight, and then all day today, I thought, "Well, maybe I'll just make my go-to chorizo and peppers dish instead because I know I love that." Fortunately, when I got to the grocery store after work tonight, I got the guts to get the few remaining ingredients I needed for this recipe, because now that I made it, I couldn't be happier. Seriously one of the best recipes I've ever made. I suppose for those of you who might try it, it will all depend on your taste preferences, but to me, it is friggin' fantastic. The original recipe can be found here, (well, the original recipe is from a cookbook, but I found it at this website), but I've included it below with a few notes/modifications of my own. A couple key things to know that made this recipe even better: You don't have to drain the tomatoes, and you don't have to cook the pasta ahead of time. Amazing! Please go out and buy the ingredients now. This recipe will change your life. ;)

 All the ingredients!

 Put the olive oil, chorizo, onions, and garlic in a pan.

 The chorizo gets a little greasy, but it mixed in well later. :)

Add the broth, tomatoes (not drained), cream, pasta (uncooked), salt, and pepper. Simmer for about 15 minutes.

 After it simmers, add half of the cheese (1/2 cup) and stir it all up!

 This is what it looks like once the cheese is stirred in.

 Sprinkle the remaining cheese on top and add the scallions. Broil for 3 minutes.

 Right out of the oven. Amazing!! Looks even better than I thought!

My plate of food! :)

INGREDIENTS

• 1 tbsp. olive oil
• 1 lb. Smoked Sausage (The original blogger used turkey sausage, but I used Smith Bros. chorizo, which I think was a fantastic addition because I like a little extra spice.)
• 1.5 cups diced onions (Thanks to this blogger, I now know that you can buy frozen diced onions. I have always diced them myself, which I may continue to do, but for now, this was a fantastic way to save time, and tears!;)
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 2 cups low-sodium chicken broth (I used chicken stock because I had some open already.)
• 1 (10 oz) can Ro-Tel tomatoes and green chiles (The recipe called for mild, but I used original, which I believe is a bit spicier. Again, I like spice!)
• 1/2 cup heavy cream
• 8 oz. uncooked penne pasta (I used bow-tie because I had it, and I think that's better than penne for this recipe!)
• 1/2 tsp. salt and pepper, each
• 1 cup Monterrey Jack Cheese, shredded (I used Mozzarella because I had it.)
• 1/3 cup thinly sliced scallions

(Sorry to distract you with all my comments, but I always just like to share how I modify the recipe. I personally think my small modifications, especially the chorizo, made this even better than the original recipe!)

DIRECTIONS

• Add olive oil to an oven-safe skillet over medium high heat until just smoking. Add sausage and onions and cook until lightly browned, about 4 minutes. Add garlic and cook until fragrant, about 30 seconds.
• Add broth, tomatoes, cream, pasta, salt and pepper and stir. Bring to a boil, cover skillet, and reduce heat to medium-low. Simmer until pasta is tender, about 15 minutes.
• Remove skillet from heat and stir in 1/2 cup cheese. Top with remaining cheese and sprinkle with scallions. Broil until cheese is melted, spotty brown, and bubbly.

**The original blog says it makes 4 servings, but based on how much is still left in my skillet after my one (and a half;) servings tonight, I think it's more than that. I suppose I'm not the best judge because most people eat more than me, but there's quite a bit there.