Creamy Roasted Red Pepper Pasta with Italian Sausage (Complete Recipe)

2026-03-04

Serves 4 | Total: ~35 minutes

Ingredients - 12 oz short pasta - 8 oz Italian sausage, casings removed - 1 jar (12 oz) roasted red peppers, drained - 1 small onion, diced - 3 cloves garlic, minced - 1/2 cup heavy cream (or half-and-half) - 1/3 cup grated Parmesan - 1/4 cup pasta water (as needed) - 2 tbsp olive oil - 1 tsp smoked paprika - Salt, pepper, chopped basil

Instructions 1) Blend roasted peppers with cream until smooth; set aside. 2) Cook pasta in salted water; reserve 1/2 cup water. 3) In a skillet, brown sausage in 1 tbsp oil; remove. 4) In same pan, cook onion in remaining oil 3–4 minutes. Add garlic and paprika; cook 30 seconds. 5) Pour in pepper cream and Parmesan; simmer 2–3 minutes. Return sausage and cooked pasta; toss, adding pasta water until silky. 6) Season, top with basil.

Why it works: blended peppers give sweet depth without long simmering; pasta water and Parmesan emulsify into a glossy sauce.

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