Carrot and tomato pasta with grilled sausage

Carrot and tomato pasta with grilled sausage makes a tasty gluten free and egg free dinner. I hadn’t thought about the juice in carrots, but it gets released during heating and makes a nice base for this pasta topping. Grape tomatoes, pesto, and gluten free pasta round out the flavors in this dinner.

You will need a grater or food processor with shredding disc, tomato knife, sharp knife, and saucepan or pasta pot.

Cut the sausage in half across the middle. Cut each piece in half across the length, leaving the casing intact (see photos). Clean the grill. Heat up the grill. Grill the sausages for about 10 minutes on each side. I like Aidells Italian style sausage, a smoked chicken sausage with mozzarella cheese and spices, but mild Italian sausage or even Polska Kielbasa will also work fine for carrot and tomato pasta.

Cook the pasta in boiling water until al dente, about 7 minutes. Drain and set aside. Here I’m using brown rice & quinoa pasta, but you can use semolina pasta or spiralized zucchini (zoodles).

While waiting on the pasta, shred the carrots. Also, cut the grape tomatoes in half.

Heat the pan on high with one spoon of water. When the water boils, lower the heat to medium. Add the shredded carrots. Add salt/garlic powder/pepper. Tip: I keep a mixture of 4 parts flaked sea salt, 1 part cracked black pepper, and 1 part garlic powder on hand for most recipes (Paula Deen’s house seasoning.) Cook and stir until carrots get limp and juice starts releasing.

Add tomatoes to the pot. Add sea salt. Continue cooking on medium until tomatoes soften.

Decrease the heat to medium low. Add pesto and cooked noodles. Heat through.

Four servings, 376 calories each.

Note: I make tons of pesto at the end of summer with our garden basil, walnuts, and parmesan. I freeze it in 2 tbsp portions in an ice cube tray, then store in the freezer in a freezer reclosable plastic bag. When using frozen pesto, I add it to the pot and stir until “melted”, then add the pasta.