Skinny Bowtie Cheesy Pasta with Chicken Sausage

Good Morning!

We’ve made it half way thru the week. That’s an accomplishment in itself this week! I don’t know why, but this week has been NON stop for me. I’m looking forward to the weekend, especially because of that little game known as the Super Bowl on Sunday 😉

I know I’ve talked about my Pinterest addiction before, don’t we all have it..at least a little bit?! 🙂 I love going on there for new ideas, particularly for new recipes. I found one for Spicy Romano Chicken with Artichoke Hearts & Sundried Tomatos and I knew I had to try it right away.

I actually tried it about a month ago, but added the two teaspoons of cayenne pepper as the directions indicated…even though the author warns about the extreme spiciness of the dish. I figured, eh, why not?! I can handle the heat. HA! Boy was I wrong. I thoroughly enjoyed the dish, but literally had to chug a glass of water between each bite.

I KNEW I wanted to make this meal again, but I just had to put my own little spin on it. I made it healthier by using Greek Yogurt instead of heavy cream, added some seasonings, left out the cayenne (replaced it with red pepper flakes), and changed the type of cheese used.

Skinny Bowtie Cheesy Pasta with Chicken Sausage

(Adapted from this recipe )

Ingredients:

The Sauce:

• 2 cups plain Greek Yogurt (I used 0% Chobani)
• 4 Tbsp butter (or margarine)
• 2 tsp  salt
• 1 – 2 tsp pepper
• 1/4 cup mozzarella cheese
• 1/4 cup parmesan cheese
• 1/2 tsp red pepper flakes
• 1 tsp Italian seasoning
• 1/4 cup chicken broth (optional, but makes it a little more ‘saucy’)

The Rest:

• 12 ounce package of bowtie pasta cooked and drained according to package directions – al dente.
• 1  Tbsp melted butter (or margarine)
• 1/2 cup sliced mushrooms (or small can sliced mushrooms, drained)
• 1 small jar artichoke hearts, drained
• 12 oz chicken sausage (can be more than 12oz if you wish- can also interchange different protein types)
• 1/4 cup sundried tomatoes, chopped
• 1 Tbsp Greek Yogurt (again, I used 0% Chobani)
• 2 Tbsp parmesan cheese

How To Make It:

Sauce:

• Melt butter in saute pan or skillet. Add greek yogurt, salt and pepper, heat to a boil. Remove from heat and fold in cheeses, cayenne pepper, Italian seasoning and chicken broth. Set aside.
  

(Yes, I know that looks kind of gross, but I promise it tastes good!)

The Rest:

• In a large skillet over medium heat, melt butter, then add mushrooms, and sundried tomatoes. Stir for one minute.
• Next add artichokes and chicken sausage. Stir.

(that’s the sausage that I used- DELICIOUS- and from Target.)

• Stir in 1 ounce heavy cream and 1/2 of the sauce. Add bowtie pasta followed by rest of the sauce. Stir gently. Serve. Top each portion with a bit of parmesan cheese.

This dish is SO easy to make, and it comes to together pretty quicky. You can also MAKE IT AHEAD of time (which is what I did), just make the meal, cover & refrigerate it. Once you are ready to eat it, heat you oven to 300 degrees, and bake covered with foil for about 25 minutes, or until heated.

I love taking recipes & making them healthier. One of my favorite substitutions for butter, sour cream & heavy cream is Chobani 0% greek yogurt. Not only does it reduce the calories in the recipe, but it also adds protein!

We are VERY much a Chobani family! 🙂

G is working on becoming the next spokeswoman for Chobani 😉

As always, I would love to know if you try the recipe, ALL feedback is welcome.