Chicken Cavatappi Bolognese
with Roasted Zucchini & Parmesan
- Wheat
- Milk
A bowl of pasta never fails to satisfy—it’s quick, carby, comforting, and our total weeknight go-to. When you add sweet Italian pork sausage, tender bites of zucchini, and Parmesan to the equation, you’ve reached another level of deliciousness entirely. Ready to enjoy bite after bite of twisty cavatappi pasta cloaked in this creamy, flavor-boosted Bolognese? We thought so.
Ingredients
1 unit
Zucchini
1 unit
Onion
1 tablespoon
Italian Seasoning
6 ounce
Cavatappi Pasta
(Contains: Wheat)
10 ounce
Chopped Chicken Breast
1 unit
Tomato Paste
1 unit
Chicken Stock Concentrate
1.5 tablespoon
Sour Cream
(Contains: Milk)
3 tablespoon
Parmesan Cheese
(Contains: Milk)
Not included in your delivery
Salt
Pepper
Cooking Oil
Butter
(Contains: Milk)
Nutrition Values
Utensils
Cooking Steps
• Adjust rack to top position and preheat oven to 450 degrees. Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Wash and dry produce. • Trim and halve zucchini lengthwise; slice crosswise into 1⁄2-inch-thick half-moons. Halve, peel, and thinly slice onion.
• Toss zucchini on a baking sheet with a drizzle of oil, half the Italian Seasoning (you’ll use the rest later), and a pinch of salt and pepper. • Roast on top rack, tossing halfway through, until browned and tender, 14-16 minutes. • Tent with foil to keep warm.
• Once water is boiling, add cavatappi to pot. Cook, stirring occasionally, until al dente, 9-11 minutes. • Reserve 11⁄2 cups pasta cooking water (2 cups for 4 servings), then drain.
• While pasta cooks, remove sausage* from casing if necessary; discard casing. • Heat a drizzle of oil in a large pan over medium-high heat. Add onion and a pinch of salt and pepper. Cook, stirring occasionally, until softened, 5-6 minutes. • Add sausage and cook, breaking up meat into pieces, until browned, 3-4 minutes (it’ll finish cooking in the next step).
Pat chicken* dry with paper towels. Swap in chicken (no need to break up into pieces!) or turkey*for sausage.
• Add tomato paste and remaining Italian Seasoning to pan. Cook, stirring constantly, until fragrant, 1 minute. • Stir in stock concentrate, 1 cup reserved pasta cooking water (11⁄2 cups for 4 servings), and a big pinch of salt and pepper. Bring to a simmer; cook until sauce has slightly thickened and sausage is cooked through, 2-3 minutes. • Reduce heat to medium low.
• Stir drained cavatappi, roasted zucchini, sour cream, and 1 TBSP butter (2 TBSP for 4 servings) into pan until thoroughly combined. TIP: If needed, stir in more reserved cooking water a splash at a time until pasta is coated in a creamy sauce. • Divide pasta between bowls. Sprinkle with Parmesan and serve.
Chicken is fully cooked when internal temperature reaches 165°.
Customer reviews
Review summary
Updated on Sep 2026- Flavor: The sausage version delivers bold, satisfying flavor; those who swapped in chicken found it noticeably milder and less complex 🍲.
- Ease of prep: This is a quick, straightforward weeknight cook with clear steps and minimal fuss.
- Suggestions: If using chicken instead of sausage, boost flavor with extra tomato paste and seasoning, as the chicken alone can taste bland. Add more zucchini — several reviewers wished there was twice as much — and consider sautéing it in the pan rather than roasting for easier cleanup.
- Leftovers: Some found the pasta soaked up the sauce overnight, making leftovers drier; add a splash of water when reheating to loosen the sauce.
- Sauce: Use only as much pasta cooking water as needed to keep the sauce creamy and coating — too much makes it thin and watery.
Reviews from our home cooks
I dislike the way zucchini gets in the oven! Never good! I sauté it always now. I have more success browning zucchini in pan, remove it, then mostly cook onion. Add chicken to cook. Add ingredients then scoop cooked pasta from water and add more cooking water as needed. Much easier to me!
Very delicious, easy to make. Swapped in the chicken and it was still a breeze!
I loved this dish! The zucchini added such good texture and flavor to the dish.
Love this quick meal and yummy meal, I've never been a fan of pasta but all the HF pasta dishes are so good! Better than going to a restaurant.
The quality ingredients and ease of cooking this were top notch.
Reasonable to prep, clear directions. Unusual for our experience with Hello Fresh, but felt under-flavored --- could have doubled the amount of tomato paste for taste and doubled the amount of sour cream to have more sauce.
I wouldn't advise folks to use as much salt in the recipe *and* put salty pasta water in the sauce. It came out way salty, but otherwise all right.
Very good, but the sauce didn't thicken well, some cornstarch or flour to thicken the sauce first would do this dish a favor
The chopped chicken breast pieces were large enough to require cutting. We've had this in the past with chicken sausage, and we definitely preferred it that way.
I wish it had more sauce, it gets dry fast, but I love it still!
