Italian Sausage and Broccolini Pasta with Lemon Cream
Penne covered in light lemon cream sauce with broccolini and savory Italian sausage. Ready in 30 minutes for a light and refreshing pasta dinner. Can be made with gluten-free pasta.
Bring a large pot of water to a boil; add a generous amount of salt. Add the penne. Cook for 4 minutes less than what is on the box. Add the broccolini and cook until fork tender the pasta is al dente. Reserve ½ cup of the pasta water, then drain.
While the water is boiling, heat olive oil in a large skillet. Brown the sausage, stirring occasionally until the chunks are broken up. Transfer the sausage to a plate. Drain the grease from the pan but don't wash.
Melt the butter in the skillet over medium-high heat. Add the onion and cook for 3-4 minutes until tender. Add the garlic and lemon zest.
Slowly stir in the heavy cream, salt, and pepper. Whisk in the cubed cream cheese and stir until melted.
Remove from heat and allow to cool slightly. Add in the lemon juice. Add the pasta water, if needed, to thin the sauce.
Stir in the cooked sausage, pasta, and broccolini. Gently toss to coat.
Season to taste and garnish with parsley and red pepper flakes
Notes
I recommend Jovial and Barilla gluten-free penne for this recipe.
If you can't find the ground sausage use links and remove the meat from the casing.
You can use hot Italian or mild but I find mild works best with this sauce.