Italian Sausage Bowtie Bake

This is easy, tastes incredible, and you don’t have to cook the pasta beforehand, which saves you a step. Feel free to substitute whatever pasta shapes you have on hand!

Ingredients

• 1 package (1 to 1.2 lbs) Italian sausage, hot or mild
• 1 tsp. olive oil (just enough to cover the bottom of your skillet lightly)
• 1/2 cup chopped onion
• Salt and pepper to taste
• 8 oz. bowtie pasta, uncooked (I use half of a 1 lb. box)
• 1 26-28 oz. jar chunky spaghetti sauce
• 1 can Italian style tomatoes
• 1 tsp. minced garlic
• Nonstick cooking spray
• 8 oz. shredded mozzarella cheese

Directions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Remove Italian sausage from its casings (I just snag the casing with a knife and rip it) and cook this together with the onion in a little olive oil. If it looks a little dry, you can add a little water (under 1/2 cup) to the skillet. Once done, salt and pepper it and take it off the burner.

In a large bowl, stir together the jar of spaghetti sauce plus one jar of water, Italian style tomatoes, minced garlic, and uncooked pasta. Add the sausage, and stir again. Spray a 9x13 inch dish with nonstick cooking spray and pour this mixture in. Even it out with a spoon so it's not one huge lump in the middle, cover tightly with foil, and plop it in the oven for about 20-25 minutes.

Stir it after about 15 minutes so that everything gets nice and tender. After the time's up, check it out. If it looks drier than it should, stir in a little more water and stick it back in. After it's done, take off the foil, sprinkle it with mozzarella, and stick it back in just long enough to melt.

You can serve this with garlic bread or cheese Texas toast, and it's good with green beans, too (especially if you put some bacon bits and a little Italian seasoning in them).

Source: I found this recipe on a bulletin board at my old job and am not sure of the original source.

By Melody from El Dorado, AR