Tag: Italian sausage

Categories
Main Dish Soup

There’s ‘snow’ excuse for waiting to try this great soup

Creamy parmesan sausage ditalini soup is hearty and full of flavors that stick to your bones. From the sausage to the parmesan, this soup is sure to warm you up on a cold day.
Creamy parmesan sausage ditalini soup is hearty and full of flavors that stick to your bones. From the sausage to the parmesan, this soup is sure to warm you up on a cold day.

As soon as the weather forecast called for snow this past week, I immediately began reviewing soup recipes I saved over the past year.

It was time.

Joey and I prepared our “get ready to be snowed in” list for the grocery store, and I was thoroughly ready to make some awesome, hearty meals while we were stuck inside.

The soup I’m sharing with you this week absolutely fit the bill for a cold day.

This recipe comes from the website “Belaya.” You can find the original post at https://belaya.info/creamy-parmesan-italian-sausage-ditalini-soup.html. I added extra garlic and pasta in my version below. It ended up creating a much thicker heartier soup/pasta dish, so if you like your soups a little looser, I’d recommend halving the amount of pasta or doubling the liquid listed below.

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Creamy Parmesan Sausage Ditalini Soup

Creamy parmesan sausage ditalini soup is hearty and full of flavors that stick to your bones. From the sausage to the parmesan, this soup is sure to warm you up on a cold day.
Course Main Course, Soup
Keyword 30-minute meal, chicken broth, chicken stock, diced tomatoes, ditalini pasta, fresh garlic, fresh spinach, grated parmesan cheese, hearty soup, heavy cream, hot Italian sausage, Italian sausage, minced garlic, onion, parmesan, red chili flakes, yellow onion

Ingredients

  • 1 tablespoon olive oil
  • 1 pound Italian sausage I used hot Italian
  • 1 small onion diced (I used yellow)
  • 6 to 8 cloves garlic minced
  • 4 cups chicken broth
  • 14.5 ounces diced tomatoes drained
  • 16 ounces ditalini or other small pasta
  • 1 cup heavy cream
  • 1/2 cup grated parmesan cheese plus more for serving
  • 2 cups fresh spinach roughly chopped
  • 1/4 teaspoon red chili flakes optional
  • salt and pepper to taste

Instructions

  • Heat the olive oil over medium heat in a large pot or Dutch oven. When it’s hot, add the sausage and onions, breaking the sausage apart as it sautes.
  • When the sausage is cooked through and the onions are soft, add the garlic, sauteing for another couple of minutes or until it is lightly browned and fragrant.
  • Pour in the chicken broth and drained tomatoes, and stir to combine. Raise the heat to bring the mixture to a low boil, and add the pasta, stirring regularly to keep it from sticking to the bottom. Boil the pasta for the amount of time recommended on the box or until it’s cooked to your liking.
  • Turn the heat down to medium-low, and stir in the cream. Then stir in the parmesan. Once the soup thickens and returns to a simmer, stir in the spinach, letting it cook for a couple minutes until it’s wilted. Finally, add red chili flakes (if desired) and salt and pepper, to taste.
  • Serve the soup with more parmesan cheese sprinkled on top.
  • For the leftovers, you may need to add more broth (or a little water) to get it back to the same consistency. It will likely thicken more in the refrigerator.

Ours was definitely thicker than the original recipe intended, but I just couldn’t see having half a box of pasta sitting in my pantry for who knows how long, so I figured there was no reason to skimp on the carbs.

This was warm, creamy and tasty. I really liked the bit of heat from the hot Italian sausage and chili flakes, too, but I also love that you can leave all that spiciness out and still have an amazing meal.

And it gave us another meal of tasty leftovers for later in the week, once the daily grind resumed. Work day or not, soup days and snow days are best combined.

This piece first appeared in print Jan. 9, 2025.

Spice Up Your Life is a weekly newspaper column written by Lindsey Young in south central Kansas. If you are interested in sponsoring this column, please contact us through the “Contact Lindsey” link at the top of the page.

Categories
Main Dish Soup

Recipe proves that, actually, it is easy bein’ cheesy

This cheesy Italian sausage potato chowder comes together easily and will warm you down to the tips of your toes.
This cheesy Italian sausage potato chowder comes together easily and will warm you down to the tips of your toes.

Is it summer yet? I’m in need of some serious sun and some serious warmth right now, and I can’t wait to toss my sweaters into a plastic tub and forget they exist for awhile.

I know I still have time, but I am so ready.

My only consolation this time of year is warm, comforting food, and this week, I found a chowder recipe that almost makes me glad it’s winter.

Almost.

This recipe comes from “A Night Owl Blog” and was published by Jenny Bullistron. You can find the original at http://www.anightowlblog.com/2015/10/cheesy-italiansausage-potatochowder.html. Rather than using Italian sausage as her ingredients list calls for, I put all the spices I listed below in my version, and I also felt no Italian soup was complete without garlic, so I tossed that in, as well.

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Cheesy Italian Sausage Potato Chowder

This cheesy Italian sausage potato chowder comes together easily and will warm you down to the tips of your toes.
Course Main Course, Soup
Cuisine Italian
Keyword basil, cayenne, celery, chicken stock, Italian sausage, minced garlic, oregano, paprika, potatoes, red pepper flakes, Russet potato, spicy soup, yellow onion

Ingredients

  • 1 small yellow onion diced
  • 1/2 teaspoon oil I used olive
  • 1 pound sausage I used mild
  • 4 to 5 cloves of garlic minced
  • a liberal pinch of red pepper flakes
  • 1/4 to 1/2 teaspoon
  • cayenne pepper
  • 1/2 teaspoon paprika
  • 1 1/2 teaspoon basil
  • 1 teaspoon oregano
  • 1/2 teaspoon black pepper
  • salt to taste
  • 4 cups potatoes peeled and diced (I used Russet)
  • 3 cups chicken stock or broth
  • 1 cup diced celery
  • 1 cup milk I used whole
  • 1 cup shredded sharp cheddar cheese

Instructions

  • In a pan, heat the oil over medium and add the onions. Saute until they are translucent.
  • Add in the sausage and break apart while cooking.
  • When the sausage is almost done, add in the garlic, red pepper flakes, cayenne, paprika, basil, oregano, black pepper and salt. Continue cooking until the sausage is cooked through, and drain off any grease that accumulates in the pan.
  • While the onions and sausage are cooking, place the chicken stock, potatoes and celery into a Dutch oven and bring to a slow boil. Turn the heat to medium, and let the vegetables simmer for about 20 minutes or until the potatoes are fork tender.
  • Add the sausage to the Dutch oven, along with the milk and cheese. Stir to combine. Serve once all ingredients are warmed through.

Joey praised this recipe as one of the best things I’ve ever made, and I did spice it up enough that it has a bit of a kick to it, so if that’s not your style, you might leave out the pepper flakes and cayenne. It will still be delicious.

And as for winter, I suppose I’ll just hunker down and deal with it for a few more months.

At least I have some leftover chowder to keep me warm for the time being.

This piece first appeared in print Jan. 28, 2016.

Spice Up Your Life is a weekly newspaper column written by Lindsey Young in south central Kansas. If you are interested in sponsoring this column, please contact us through the “Contact Lindsey” link at the top of the page.

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