Everything but the Kitchen Sink Pasta

An irresistible and super simple one-pot pasta dish filled with spicy sausage and a silky tomato cream sauce. It’s a perfect family-friendly meal for busy weeknights!

Ingredients

• 8oz chicken breast, shredded
• 1lb sausage links
• 1lb shrimp
• 2 tbsp Cajun Seasoning (or other spicy seasoning)
• 2 tbsp olive oil
• 1 red pepper, chopped (about 1 ½ cups)
• 1 medium onion, chopped (about 1 cup)
• 4 cloves garlic, minced
• Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
• ½ tsp ground fennel or 1 tsp fennel seeds
• ¼ tsp red pepper flakes
• ¼ cup dry white wine
• 16 oz marinara sauce
• 6 tbsp heavy cream
• 8 oz short pasta shapes, like penne
• 4 cups water
• ¼ cup grated Parmesan cheese
• ¼ cup chopped fresh basil

Instructions

1. Thaw the shrimp, if frozen. Preheat the grill if cooking the sausage outside, otherwise preheat a pan for the sausage. If you don’t have chicken that’s already shredded, now is also the time to cook that and shred it or chop into small pieces.
2. Heat the oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat and saute the peppers and onions until they start to soften, about 8 minutes. Stir in the garlic, fennel, red pepper flakes, and a good pinch of salt and a few cranks of black pepper. Pour the wine into the skillet and scrape up the bits on the bottom of the pan. Pour the sauce and 3 cups of water into the skillet and then stir the pasta into the mixture until well-combined.
3. Bring the liquid to a boil, reduce the heat to medium-low, and cover. Allow the liquid to simmer, stirring occasionally at first and more frequently towards the end to prevent the pasta from sticking, for about 15 to 17 minutes. Every 5 minutes or so, stir in a little of the remaining cup of water. If the liquid starts boiling over, reduce the heat to low.
4. While the pasta is cooking, cook the sausage links and let them rest ~5m before slicing into medallions or on a bias. Reserve the juices from the cut sausage. Season the raw shrimp with cajun seasoning and cook until just under-done (they’ll finish cooking when mixed in with the pasta).
5. When the pasta is cooked through, stir in the cream, Parmesan cheese, and most of the basil (reserving a little for garnish). Add the cooked sausage, reserved sausage drippings, shrimp, and shredded chicken and mix through. Allow the cream to heat through for 2 minutes. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Allow the dish to cool for 5 minutes, sprinkle the remaining basil over the top, and serve.