Okay – so since this is my first post of a recipe, let me just put it on the table – I hate cooking. Now, I think if I didn’t have a full-time job plus three kids to take care of, that might be different. At this point, however, our nights are so hectic, between practices, homework, packing lunches, baths, and whatever else happens to get crammed in there I have ZERO time to think about dinner. And before you tell me, let me just say, YES, in a perfect world, I would meal prep everything on Sunday and have all my food for the week. Oddly though, being one of two of my only free days all week long, meal prep is the last thing I want to do on a Sunday.

So, its safe to say, on this blog you will probably never find complicated recipes or meals. However, when and if I happen to come across some amazing quick and easy meals I will share them with all the other mothers out there that loathe meal prep as much as I do – of course, now that I have my instapot this has all changed. Let’s be honest. My life has changed – I highly recommend all moms buy the instapot ASAP.

Anyways, this recipe, pasta with chicken sausage and broccoli, is a non-instapot recipe and it is still AMAZING. It meets all of my ideal meal requirements: 1) it is super easy to make (like, under 20 minutes easy); 2) my kids think it tastes amazing and they actually eat it (all three of them); 3) its actually healthy. You can also make this recipe gluten free by using gluten free pasta, or even set aside the broccoli and sausage after it is cooked and add it to a smaller portion of gluten free pasta if you need to (this is what I do for myself.)

The grocery store I frequent has great chicken sausage with kale that works really well in this recipe, but you could really use any chicken sausage or even sweet Italian sausage. I also recommend using the steamable frozen broccoli for ease.

Also, sometimes after I make this there seems to be too little cheese, so I add more. Sometimes I want more olive oil, so I add more. This recipe is really flexible and can be made to your family’s preferred tastes!

So there you have it – it is the perfect meal. I can’t remember where I initially found the recipe, or else I would just link to that amazing person’s page, but I have changed it a little, but here it is:

Ingredients:

1 Box (12 oz) Pasta (I recommend shells or bowties, definitely not traditional spaghetti or angel hair)
12-14 oz of  sausage – I recommend chicken so it is healthier, but sweet Italian sausage would work fine too
12 oz steam in the bag frozen broccoli
4 tablespoons olive oil
1/2 tsp Garlic Power
1/3 Cup grated Pecorino Romano or Parmesan Cheese
Additional grated Pecorino Romano or Parmesan Cheese for topping

Instructions:
Total time: 20 minutes
Servings: 8

1. Boil salted water; add pasta and cook as per instructions on the box, drain and set aside.
2. Cook broccoli according to package directions
3. While pasta and broccoli are cooking, remove chicken sausage from the casing and cook on medium heat in a pan until cooked through, breaking it up as it cooks so that it is crumbly. Remove sausage from heat and set aside.
4. Take broccoli out of steam bag, drain excess liquid, and chop up additionally into smaller pieces (especially if you are making this for kids – the smaller the broccoli, the more likely they are to eat it).
5. Add olive oil to large bowl or pasta pot. Mix in garlic powder. Add pasta, broccoli, and sausage and grated cheese. Mix well.
6. Add additional cheese once served!