Beef, tomato and chilli pasta

For a quick and easy pasta meal, sausage mince is a tasty alternative to conventional meatballs.

• 8 thick beef sausages
• 2 teaspoons olive oil
• 1 large brown onion, chopped
• 2 garlic cloves, thinly sliced
• 2 small red chillies, thinly sliced
• 500g cherry tomatoes, halved
• 2 tablespoons tomato paste
• 80g baby spinach
• 1/2 cup fresh basil leaves, torn
• Cooked linguine pasta and shaved parmesan cheese, to serve

Energy 2285kJ	Fat saturated 19.00g
Fat Total 43.00g	Carbohydrate sugars 6.00g
Carbohydrate Total 11.00g	Dietary Fibre 9.00g
Protein 27.00g	Cholesterol 107.00mg
Sodium 1308.48mg

All nutrition values are per serve.

1. Step 1

   Squeeze sausage mince from casings, in small pieces, over bowl. Discard casings. Heat oil in a large frying pan over medium-high heat. Add mince pieces. Cook, stirring for 5 to 6 minutes or until browned. Remove from heat. Drain excess oil from pan.

2. Step 2

   Return pan to heat. Add onion, garlic and chilli. Cook, stirring, for 3 minutes or until onion has softened. Add tomato and tomato paste. Cook, stirring occasionally, for 10 minutes or until tomato has collapsed and sauce has thickened. Remove from heat.

3. Step 3

   Stir in spinach and basil. Serve with pasta and parmesan.

Super saver: Use 3 roma tomatoes, chopped, instead of cherry tomatoes and save around $1.85 in total.

Freezer tip: Prepare beef, tomato and chilli pasta up to the end of step 2. Cool. Spoon into a large snap-lock bag. Seal and flatten bag for quicker defrosting. Freeze for up to 2 months. Thaw in fridge overnight. Transfer to a frying pan. Reheat, stirring, over medium heat, adding beef stock if necessary. Complete recipe.