Easy Sausage and Mushroom Pasta

I’m waiting another year before heading off to Uni, but with most of my friends flying the nest I thought it was about time that I made a comforting, easy main course for all the first years out there. This one is simple to make, won’t break the bank and is really tasty, which I think is the basic criteria for most student cooking. Plus it’s relatively healthy, so you can be confident that this one will override weeks of Pizza and beer, and pump some nutrients into your body.

It may not be the most pretty dish in the world, but it’s a really good one to make when you’re tired, busy,  hungover or all three at once. If you want make it even healthier you can add fresh tomatoes, peppers or any other veg that takes your fancy, but I’ve stuck with what we’ve got here to keep it simple. The quantities for this serves two, so it’s kind of obvious, but if you’re only cooking for one you can either half the quantities, or put the rest in the fridge for a later date.

I’m going to leave the writing there for this one, as a simple recipe only needs a simple intro!

Recipe

Serves 2

Time: 20 minutes

Ingredients

• 4 Sausages
• 100g Pasta
• 1 White onion
• 1 Garlic clove
• 1 tbsp Sunflower oil
• 75g Mushrooms
• 200g Chopped tomatoes (can or carton)
• 100g Cheddar cheese (optional)
• Fresh basil to serve (optional)

Method

1. Pre-heat a grill on full heat. Put the sausages onto a grill pan and pierce slightly with a knife so that the skin is punctured. Put under the grill and leave to cook. Once they’ve browned on one side turn them over so that they cook evenly. This should take 5-10 minutes. (If you don’t have a grill, put 1tsp vegetable oil into a pan and gently fry the sausages until cooked).
2. Fill a pan with water and bring to the boil. When boiling add the pasta, stir once to break the pasta up and then leave to boil according to packet instructions.
3. Meanwhile, take the onion and garlic, remove the skins and then finely chop.
4. Put the oil into a large pan and heat gently. Add the chopped onion and garlic and cook until just beginning to caramelise.
5. Add the mushrooms and continue to fry until they begin to soften and the onions are caramelised. Pour in the chopped tomatoes and leave on a gentle simmer.
6. Once the sausages are done (they won’t be pink in the middle anymore), remove them from the grill pan (or frying pan) and slice each one into four.
7. Once the pasta is done, sieve to remove the water and then add the drained pasta to the tomato mixture.
8. Add the chopped sausages and stir to combine. Season with salt and pepper to taste.
9. Spoon into bowls, grate some cheese over and serve with fresh basil. Enjoy!

Thanks for reading! Look out for my next post on Wednesday – it’s going to be some good old comfort food.

Emma x