
This post is sponsored by Eckrich, however, all opinions are my own.
I am always looking for quick, filling, and delicious meals to feed my tribe of seven. However, since I am pulled in so many different directions throughout the day/week, it can be difficult to find the time to make a complete meal plan. Add sports and other afterschool activities to the equation, and by the time we get home in the evening, there usually isn’t time left for me to spend an additional two hours in the kitchen cooking dinner.
When I’m crunched for time, one of my favorite meals is a quick pasta dish that my entire family absolutely loves. This Smoked Sausage Cajun Alfredo is a recipe that I learned from my mom, and because it takes under 30 minutes to cook and I can use whatever I have on hand in my kitchen, it’s a perfect go-to for our late nights.
Because this meal is simple to make, I can have my teenager pitch in just to help with some of the other smaller tasks in order to speed things alongs.
For this recipe, we use Eckrich Origiginal Skinless Smoked Sausage Rope. I love keeping Eckrich Smoked Sausage in the house because it can be paired with whatever you have on-hand in the fridge or pantry for a fast, fool-proof meal that the whole family will love. It is crafted with the right blend of spices for a rich and savory taste so iIt gives the pasta the right perfect amount a of flavor, so and there is no need to add a lot of additional extra seasoning if you do not want to.
After cooking and draining eight ounces of pasta, I take one of the sausages and slice ¼ of it, placing it into a large skillet and browning over a medium-high heat for about five minutes.
Once complete, I sit the pasta and sausage off to the side, and begin to work on a homemade alfredo sauce. This is probably the most tedious part of the recipe, due to the fact that is easy to mess up the whole process if you aren’t paying attention.
First, you start by melting the butter in a medium, non-stick saucepan over medium heat. Once melted, add cream cheese and a pinch of garlic powder, stirring with a wire whisk until smooth. As you are whisking, add milk, and continue to whisk to smooth out lumps. Lastly, stir in parmesan and pepper. Once you reach the desired the consistency you can remove from the heat.
That’s it! 30 minutes and your family canis enjoy ing a delicious meal!
Check out all of the different varieties of Eckrich Smoked Sausage and where to buy by visiting www.Eckrich.com.
Smoked Sausage Cajun Alfredo
¼ Eckrich Original Skinless Smoked Sausage Rope
8 oz. pasta cooked and drained
2 tsp. Cajun seasoning
Alfredo Sauce
½ cup butter
1 8oz pckg cream cheese
2 teaspoon. g Garlic powder
2 cups of milk
½ cup grated parmeseanParmesan cheese
⅛ teaspoon black pepper
- Prepare pasta according to package directions; drain and set aside.
- Slice and sauté sausage in a large skillet over medium-high heat for 5 minutes, turning
occasionally.
- Add cream and Cajun seasoning; bring to a boil. Reduce heat; simmer gently for 3-4
minutes or until mixture begins to thicken.
- Remove from heat, stir in Parmesan cheese.
- Add pasta to sauce and toss.
Sauce
- Melt butter in a medium, non-stick saucepan over medium heat.
- Add cream cheese and garlic
- powder, stirring with wire whisk until smooth.
- Add milk, a little at a time, whisking to smooth out
- lumps.
- Stir in Parmesan and pepper. Remove from heat when sauce reaches desired consistency.
- Sauce will thicken rapidly, thin with milk if cooked too long.
- Toss with hot pasta to serve.
Love of impromptu dance parties, 80’s cartoons, and horizontal life pauses (aka naps); Natasha Brown is a stay at home mom of 4 kids, and wife to one lucky guy! In her spare time, she is co-editor of Grits & Grace, as well as editor for The Mother Hustler Blog and Creative Director for the Mother Hustler podcast.