spicy cream tomato sauce pasta;

This recipe came from one of those long-week, long-days, need to throw something together evening meals.  But it was surprisingly tasty and actually elevated, and not at all “from-a-jar”.  And it really only takes a little bit of cream!  Well, not quite.  I’ve mentioned it before, but even as a self-proclaimed “foodie”, I feel like canned and jarred items have their place.  They’re perfect when you’re tired and lazy, or can’t get up the effort to run to the grocery store.  Don’t underestimate those easy cheats!  They come in handy when you’re having last-minute company, or you need to impress the in-laws.  Or you want to spoil yourself without ruining it all by having to do a billion dishes!

I’ve been putting in some extra hours at work to get this new functionality done, and it’s been a little draining.  So I haven’t been spending as much time with my boys (T and Kenichi) as I like.  But T has really been instrumental in helping keep me sane!  So he helped with this recipe, despite his own busy schedule and long work hours.  It’s one of my favorite things to do to make meals together in the kitchen with another person.  It’s fun, and my philosophy is, if you’re going to spend weeks of your life in the kitchen, you might as well make it a social event!  Although sometimes Kenichi takes it a little too far and is stuck to my side like glue, but we’re working on having him sit in his own little corner when we’re in the kitchen!  But he is useful when I drop those scraps, ^_~

I dropped one of the sausage casings on the floor and it was gone in a flash!  For this one, we used spicy italian sausage, although if you’re worried about the spice level, you can always use sweet italian sausage, and then add the appropriate amount of spice to the sauce.  It will give you a little more control over the spice, but if you’re all in then go for it!  Spicy sausage does add a kick of heat, but in my experience won’t really overwhelm the dish.

I also want to note that the cream really adds some luxury to the sauce.  You don’t even use that much, but it changes the sauce from your typical pasta and red sauce, to pasta and creamy, flavorful sauce.  The added spices and herbs also enhance the flavor.  I believe we used a four-cheese pasta sauce, because as you might have noticed, I’m a cheese lover.  But really it’s another way to customize to your preference!  The limits of pre-prepared sauces are limitless!  So take that to use as a base, and add flavors.  Just remember to add that kick of cayenne if you want the spicy part!

Related posts:

sausage pesto pasta; drunken italian noodles; burrata proscuitto arugula pizza; broccoli cheddar soup; shrimp scampi;