Perfectly cooked, al dente pasta laced with flavorful cream sauce and vibrant green peas is something everyone should be entitled to- but all those calories… ouch. Sometimes the guilt you feel after swiping that last piece of rigatoni in sauce hurts! Fortunately, instead of using heavy cream, there is an alternative. Milk and flour.
Thanks to an inspirational allrecipes recipe with helpful comments and a few tweaks, here is another meal any newbie can make with ingredients everyone is familiar with.
Ingredients:
1 pound pasta (I’m using rigatoni)
1/2 pound Spicy Italian Sausage, remove casing
1/2 pound Sweet Italian Sausage, remove casing
12 oz frozen green peas
1/2 cup grated Parmesan
6 garlic cloves minced
1 1/2 cup milk
2 tbs olive oil
2 tbs butter (healthier: light canola butter)
1 tbs all purpose flour
Salt and Pepper
(The picture below shows 1/2 the recipe amount, so use a large pot instead of a sauté pan to fit all the ingredients for the whole amount)
Directions:
1) Bring a pot of salted water to boil and add pasta. In the meantime…
2) In a sauté pan, sauté garlic in olive oil over medium heat for 2 minutes
3) Add Italian sausage meat and cook until brown. (Drain the oil for less calories)
4) Add frozen peas and cook for 5 minutes
5) Add flour and mix
6) Add milk and butter. After it boils, bring to a simmer and add Parmesan cheese
7) When pasta is al dente, drain and add to sauce
8 ) Mix up all that goodness. Season with salt and pepper. (If sauce is too thick, add more milk)
9) Pat yourself on the back because you just cooked like a champ.
Prep Time: 25 minutes
Level: Intermediate
Total Cost: ~$20 ($4 per person)
Servings: 5-6 people
