Disclaimer: images of raw meat follow. 

With midterms fast encroaching, taking the time to cook a nice meal could be the difference between a good or a bad night of studying! Today I present to you a meal for the masses, literally. While great as leftovers for lunch or dinner the next day, this pasta dish is perfect to impress your friends or your dates! The best part about this dish is its flexibility; add any types of veggies you would like, replace the sausage with vegan sausage, add lemon, the possibilities are endless! 

You will need: 

  • Spicy or Sweet Italian Sausage 
  • Pasta of your choice (I used pappardelle because it made me feel fancier) 
  • Cherry tomatoes 
  • Bell Pepper (optional, but recommended) 
  • 1 tbs Olive Oil 
  • ½ tsp or one clove of garlic 
  • ½ tbs Balsamic Vinegar
  • Salt and Pepper
  • Parmesan 
  1. Preheat your oven to 450! 
  2. Cut your cherry tomatoes in half, add to a bowl! Also, if you have it, slice your bell pepper and add to the same bowl. 
  3. Add olive oil, balsamic vinegar, garlic, salt and pepper to tomatoes and pepper and mix well! 
  4. If your knife skills are so lackluster that this process took you as long as your oven does to preheat (as it did for me LOL) then spread those delicious little tomatoes and bell peppers over a pan and pop ‘em in the heated oven for 15 to 25 minutes. 
  5. Once those delicious suckers have been cooking for a few minutes, pop your pasta pot on the stove top with water and bring it to a boil. Once boiling, add your pasta, and I hope for the sake of your taste buds from meals past that it doesn’t need to be said but, ADD SALT! 
  6. Grab a large pan! Apologies for the abundance of kitchen supplies needed for this recipe. With the pan on the stove grab your italian sausage and smoosh those babies right out of the casings and into the pan. Chop the uncased sausage up in the pan and let that cook. 
  7. By now your tomatoes and bell peppers should be sufficiently roasted. Pull them out of the oven and once your sausage has been cooked almost all the way through (like no raw meat seen but you know it needs some more heat), dump the roasted tomatoes and pepper into the same pan. 
  8. As the sausage and vegetables finish cooking together in the pan, drain your pasta (once done) and add to the pan, turning off the heat. 
  9. Finally, add hefty amounts of parmesan to the pan with everything, mixing in. Voila! Your delicious sausage and roasted tomato pasta is complete! 

Pasta via Maddie Goodman