Quick Turkey Meatball Pasta with Tomatoes & Spinach – Recipe!

I love meatballs, but during the summer, I’m looking for a quicker approach to cooking to get out of the kitchen faster. However, I’m not willing to sacrifice flavor at any meal, so a bit of creativity needs to happen. Seasoned turkey sausage in its casing, is easily removed and dolloped into faux meatballs, for a quick solution to preparing them from scratch. I just adore the idea of having an easier meatball recipe, so I can enjoy a great Italian-style pasta meal in minutes.

Summertime is all about tomatoes, and this is definitely the time of year to use fresh, instead of canned. Heirloom or meaty Beefsteak tomatoes make a sweeter experience in any recipe, but especially in this quick pasta dish. The plump tomatoes gently burst to create a sauce, along with the spinach, for a lighter take on a pasta dinner.

What makes this different from most traditional Italian food, is that the sauce is not thick and hardy, but instead, light and brothy. You don’t feel weighted down after eating this meal, but gently satisfied from summertime flavors. It makes the perfect warm weather weeknight dinner.

Ingredients

12 ounces short dried pasta – rotini, penne, fusilli

1/2 pound turkey sausage in casing, spicy or mild

1 shallot, minced

1 clove garlic, minced

1/2 cup chicken broth

1 large tomato, diced

3 cups fresh baby spinach leaves

1 tablespoon butter

1/4 cup Parmesan cheese

olive oil

salt & pepper

(Serves 4)

To Prepare:

Boil pasta for 8-10 minutes until al dente, drain and set aside.
In a large skillet drizzled with olive oil, squeeze sausage from casing into balls. Place over medium heat and cook until almost no longer pink.
Add shallot and garlic, stir. Cook for 1 minute. Add chicken broth and loosen sausage bits from bottom of pan with a spoon incorporating them into broth.
Add tomato and spinach, stir. Cook until spinach is wilted into broth, about 3 minutes. Season with salt and pepper, then add cooked pasta, stir. Stir butter into sauce to slightly thicken. Spoon into bowls and sprinkle with Parmesan cheese. Enjoy!