Gluten Free Pasta & Sausage Skillet Dinner

My mother-in-law gave us some fresh sausage purchased from some of her friends who belong to our local Italian Club. (Thank you, Mom!) So this recipe features sausage with tomato sauce and gluten-free rice penne pasta. For a vegetarian dish, leave out the sausage.

Bring water to a boil for the pasta.

Saute 1 pound sausage in a large skillet until cooked through. Remove sausage from skillet and add 1/4 cup onion, 1/4 cup green pepper, and 1/4 cup sweet red pepper to drippings. (If you don't use sausage, use 1 Tablespoon olive oil instead of drippings.) Cook one minute. Then add 4 cloves garlic, minced, and 1/3 cup white wine or chicken broth. Mix in the following and simmer:
1 Tablespoon chili powder (or 1 teaspoon if you like it mild)
2 Tablespoons soy sauce (I prefer low salt)
1 teaspoon pepper
1 teaspoon dried basil
1-2 teaspoons sugar
2 Tablespoons lime juice

Now add 24 ounces no-salt pasta sauce or tomato sauce (or 14 ounces canned tomatoes combined with 10 ounces tomato sauce). Return sausage to sauce and simmer 10 minutes, while you cook 1/2 pound penne in the boiling water. (Most rice penne cooks in about 9 minutes.)

Simmer sausage mixture 1-2 minutes. Serve topped with Parmesan or Romano cheese to taste.

Feel free to use whatever pasta you have on hand. Many kids I know prefer bowtie (farfalle) pasta. If you don't need it to be gluten free, any pasta will work.

A side of green beans (cooked with olive oil and a few tablespoons of sweet red peppers) is a great accompaniment to this dish.

Yield: 4 servings