Name: Shrimp and Sausage Pesto Pasta
Prep time: 15 min
Cook time: 25 min
Ingredients: 1 pound penne pasta (or pasta of choice); 2 Tbsps olive oil; 1 pound jumbo shrimp (peeled and deveined); kosher salt, pepper, crushed red pepper flakes; 1 pound smoked sausage (cut into 1/2 inch slices); 1 pound asparagus (cut into inch pieces); 1 onion (diced); 1 Tbsp garlic paste or minced garlic; 6 oz sun dried tomatoes (sliced); 8 oz pesto; 8 oz shredded mozzarella cheese

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Shrimp and Sausage Pesto Pasta is a one pan comfort food recipe that should for sure be made more than just once in a blue moon.

I first made this pasta dish about 4 years ago.

My poor husband has been asking for it again ever since.

Finally I decided to make it for him, and he even said it was well worth the wait 🙂

This is how to make Shrimp and Sausage Pesto Pasta…

I got the shrimp already peeled and deveined, so no actual work was involved with those.

The rest of the prep was basically slicing some smoked sausage, dicing an onion, and cutting a bunch of asparagus.

Usually I do make my own pesto and freeze it, but sadly I used it all.

So in this dish I am using jarred pesto.

The sun dried tomatoes are even already sliced…geez I guess I was feeling lazy 😉

So, remember I said this was a one pan meal.

And it truly is!

This one pot worked pretty hard for this dish, but hey I only had one pan to wash so that’s a plus.

First, boil a pound of penne pasta, or pasta of choice, according to the package directions.

box of penne pasta with boiling water in background

Then, drain it and set the pasta aside.

Next, return the large pasta pot to the stove over medium heat.

Add some olive oil, shrimp, kosher salt, pepper, and crushed red pepper flakes.

Shrimp only takes a few minutes to cook. When it’s done, remove the shrimp from the pot and set aside.

Into the same pot over medium heat add the sliced sausage.

Smoked sausage is already cooked, so we just want to crisp up the edges a bit.

Then, set the sausage aside with the shrimp.

And, you guessed it , into the same pot add more olive oil along with the onion, asparagus, and garlic.

Add a bit more kosher salt, pepper, and crushed red pepper flakes as well.

This will cook 4 to 5 minutes, stirring it a few times.

Now everyone goes back into the pot…starting with the shrimp and sausage.

shrimp and sausage with veggies in a pan

Almost done with Shrimp and Sausage Pesto Pasta!

Also add the cooked pasta, sun dried tomatoes, pesto, and some shredded mozzarella cheese.

Stir until evenly mixed and then taste for seasoning.

My good friend came over to drink wine with me and cook together.

Tasting is obviously the best part of cooking.

We each dug in with a fork and agreed it was perfectly seasoned.

But you may need to add more kosher salt, pepper, or crushed red pepper flakes if needed.

We chowed down even before my husband got home…remember the poor guy who waited four years for this dish?!

I mean, we had to make sure it was delicious enough, right?!

We will call it quality control 😉

We even saved some for her husband, and mine had lots of leftovers so everyone was happy 🙂

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