This past weekend Carl’s older sister had flown in from the East coast, we were surprising his mother who had retired from teaching after 35 years, Congrats to her. 🙂 We had planned to eat out on Saturday night at Rudy’s Red Eye Grill . I really liked this place because it is a fun atmosphere and it was a plus that they have a gluten free menu! I normally get the shrimp scampi, yummy!

On Sunday, I wanted to cook at home. For lunch, we had wild rice brats from the meat market with all the yummy fixings. Sunday Night I made a pasta dish that I found on Tasty Kitchen. It was pretty good and super easy to make.

Pasta with Sweet Italian Sausage-

Picture is one I took.

Ingredients:

• ½ pounds Sweet Italian Sausage (I used sweet italian turkey sausage)
• 1 pound Lean Ground Beef
• 3 cups Tomato Sauce (homemade Or Store Bought)
• 1 Tablespoon Garlic Powder
• 1 cup Low Fat Milk
• 1 pound Pasta
• ¼ cups Fresh Basil, Chopped
• Salt And Pepper, to taste
• ¼ cups Parmesan Cheese, Grated (or More To Taste)

Instructions:

Roast the sausages on a baking sheet in a 350ºF oven for approximately 20 minutes. Flip them over and continue roasting for another 20 minutes or until they are brown and the inside is no longer pink.

While the sausage is cooking, brown the ground beef in a pan on the stove top, breaking it up with a wooden spoon. Add the tomato sauce, garlic powder, milk and stir. When the sausages are cooked, slice diagonally and add to the beef sauce. Simmer on low heat while you cook the pasta.

You can use whatever pasta you like but I recommend one that holds a thick sauce well. I used calamarata (a pasta with large wide rings that resemble calamari) but pappardelle or penne would also work well. Cook the pasta in boiling salted water according to package directions, drain and add to the sauce. Toss in the basil and season to taste. Finish with the grated Parmesan cheese.

What I did different- 

I did not roast the italian sausage in the oven. I cooked it in a pan with olive oil and then put it to the side. I also added a can of chunky of tomatoes to add more flavor and color, I did not add as much tomato sauce then. I did follow the directions of adding the milk, but next time I would maybe add half the milk but with more tomatoes of any type. If you really like flavor I would add a few italian spices.