So, I’m pretty sure Trader Joe’s now carries about 43 varieties of chicken sausage. Ok, maybe just 10. But still — SO MUCH CHICKEN SAUSAGE!!!
Today felt like a good day to be a part of the fad, so I brought home some of their spicy Italian (I know – the least creative) variety and a batch of adorable little brussels sprouts to make some pasta. Between the two of those ingredients cooking, the house already smelled amazing. But then add in some garlic and fresh pesto, and then top the warm pasta with Parmesan cheese….and holy cow. This impromptu little recipe is definitely going down in the books. Easy, and très-delish!!
I’m already looking forward to the leftovers. :)
How To Cut Brussels Sprouts | 1-Minute Video
Pesto Pasta with Chicken Sausage & Roasted Brussels Sprouts
This pesto pasta with chicken sausage and roasted brussels sprouts is a hearty and delicious meal, made healthier with (lighter) chicken sausage and lots of brussels sprouts.
Ingredients
- 1 lb fresh brussels sprouts, ends trimmed and any yellowed/browned outer leaves removed, then sliced in half
- 3 Tbsp. olive oil, divided
- 1/2 tsp. Kosher salt
- 1/2 tsp. freshly-ground black pepper
- 1 lb (16 oz.) orecchiette (or any pasta)
- 4 chicken sausage links (I used spicy Italian), sliced into 1/4″ thick coins
- 5 cloves garlic, peeled and thinly sliced
- 1/3 cup pesto
- Parmesan cheese, for serving
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. In a large bowl, mix together brussels sprouts, 2 Tbsp. olive oil, salt and pepper. Gently stir until well-combined.
- Prepare a baking sheet with aluminum foil, then spread the brussels sprouts on it evenly. Roast for about 20-30 minutes, stirring once partway through, or until they are crispy on the outside and cooked on the inside. (My batch of tiny sprouts only took about 12 minutes to cook.) Remove from oven and set aside.
- Meanwhile, heat the remaining olive oil in a skillet over medium-high heat. Add the sausage and cook, turning occasionally, until nearly-browned, about 6-8 minutes. Add the garlic, and continue cooking for another 1-2 minutes until the garlic is fragrant and the sausage is browned.
- Cook the pasta in generously-salted boiling water until al dente according to the package directions. (I begin heating my water while preparing the brussel sprouts, and added the pasta to the boiling water just after beginning to cook the sausage.) Once the pasta is cooked, drain the water (reserving 1/4 cup pasta water), and then toss together the pasta, pesto, cooked sausage and garlic, and brussels sprouts. Add in some of the reserved pasta water if needed for extra moisture.
- Serve warm, and sprinkle with freshly-grated Parmesan cheese.
Notes
This would be even better sprinkled with some toasted pine nuts!
Did you make this?Let me know how it turned out in the comments below!
Super easy to make! I made this for my husband, toddler and myself, it was a hit. My mother had it for left overs and really enjoyed it as well! Unfortunately my grocery store doesn’t carry orecchiette pasta so I used bow tie pasta and it’s great. I’ve made it 3 times so far and just as good each time. Thanks for the recipe!
Loved it! I used apple chicken sausage.
Love this recipe! I use Trader Joe’s pesto (a whole jar) and it’s great. I also use Trader Joe’s garlic chicken sausage, add extra garlic and deglaze the sausage pan with white wine. Great, easy weeknight recipe!
I love this recipe and it is part of our meal rotation. So good and easy to make. I used Roasted Garlic sausages and eliminated the sliced garlic and decreased the salt on the Brussels sprouts. The roasted Brussels sprouts are wonderful. Leftovers ( if any) are great!
Can I just say this is a simple masterpiece!!! I made it with shredded brussel sprouts and roasted the garlic with it, also i couldnt find chicken sausage so i used italian and used the pesto on the side.
And added fresh green onion at the end.
My family loved it will be making again thank you!
I realize this is a very old post but I came across this recipe via Google and I’m going to try it out tonight! I just bought the spicy Italian chicken sausage at Trader Joe’s! Going to add brussel sprouts, their vegan pesto and red lentil pasta! Yum! Thanks for sharing
Great recipe, love Brussels sprouts, one of my go to meals. I always have the ingredients on hand.
I couldn’t find my meal box subscription recipe for something similar, and came across this instead. It was perfect! We had frozen pesto to use up, and the only thing I changed was to add chopped onion in while I sauteed the sausage. Thanks!
I️ used Trader Joe’s pesto and it was delicious!
I make this all of the time. It’s a great easy meal to take to work.
Thanks for sharing, Janet, we’re so happy you’re a fan! :)