What’s for dinner??…”that awesome pasta”, of course!

Yup, the dreaded nightly question that haunts us busy entrepreneur moms that juggle a million domestic to-do items in an average day alongside our million business-related to-do items. Even if we are meal planning ninjas, there are always those nights that just don’t go as planned. The baby didn’t take that well-planned out nap. Two kids called from school in a panic about that forgotten item that must be delivered to prevent scholastic armageddon. Any number of client “emergencies” completely blew your well-laid-out dinner preparation time.

And so here you stand…at 4:00pm…facing down those hungry eyes of your busy kiddos who themselves are facing a busy evening of activities with only a small window for dinner.

Lets just get one thing straight…

I am NOT a meal planning ninja.

So unfortunately, I seem to find myself in this position quite frequently!

But while I may not be a meal planning ninja, I do have certain skills in pulling together quick and mostly nutritious dinners to make up for it!

So what’s for dinner?? Well, let me tell you! This recipe I will drop on you tonight is what WE had for dinner and if you are anything like me, you might be having it for dinner sometime this week too! Because it is not only an every-age-crowd-pleaser but it is quick, uses everyday items you probably already have on hand, and it is actually nutritious! Win, win, right?

So here we go! I don’t necessarily have a name for this one yet but tonight it was called “that awesome pasta” by my kiddos! Here’s what you’ll need:

• about 1lb of Gemelli Pasta (or short cut pasta of your choice)
• 1 pkg Sweet Apple Chicken Sausages ( we get ours at Costco from the frozen meat section)
• 1-2 sweet apples (peeled and cut into chunks)
• 1 large sweet onion diced (a large shallot is preferable but I almost never have those at hand!)
• 4 cloves garlic
• 4 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
• a pinch of red chili pepper flakes
• 6 oz  baby spinach
• 1 cup chicken broth

Here’s what I do with all that yumminess!…

1. Get that salted water boiling for the pasta and drop it in to start cooking.
2. Heat the extra virgin olive oil in a large frying pan while you cut the sausage into small pieces. Then add the sausage and diced onion to the oil to brown (about 3-4 minutes).
3. Add the garlic, apples and chili pepper flakes to the sausage/onion mixture and cook an additional 2-3 minutes until the apples are soft
4. Add the chicken broth, about a cup of the pasta water and the baby spinach and cook until the spinach is wilted and the sauce has thickened. (About 2-3 minutes)
5. Drain that pasta and combine the pasta with the meat mixture.
6. Toss everything and garnish with some parmesan cheese to taste!

Bam! Done! I like to set some vegetables to steam for about 15-20 minutes while I’m making this dish. Throw in a little bread and fruit and you’ve got a 30 minute meal that will look and taste like you’ve been in the kitchen for hours! This is a crowd pleaser from my 11 month old all the way up to my teenagers and husband!

Enjoy!

If I have saved even one of you from that “what’s for dinner” evening panic, then this post was well worth it! What are some of your favorite last-minute dinner saves?