Italian Chicken Sausage & Cavatappi Bar
One recipe–endless ways to enjoy!
- Wheat
- Milk
How do you make everyone happy at dinner? A DIY pasta bar! You’ll set out springy cavatappi pasta, roasted zucchini, savory chicken sausage, two sauces—marinara and lemon-garlic cream—crunchy toasted panko, and Parmesan cheese family style so everyone can create their perfect pasta plate. Order extra broccoli for more veggies, or add chicken cutlets!
Ingredients
14 ounce
Marinara Sauce
9 ounce
Italian Chicken Sausage Mix
1 unit
Onion
1 unit
Zucchini
6 ounce
Cavatappi Pasta
(Contains: Wheat)
4 tablespoon
Cream Cheese
(Contains: Milk)
1 unit
Lemon
1 tablespoon
Italian Seasoning
3 tablespoon
Parmesan Cheese
(Contains: Milk)
¼ cup
Panko Breadcrumbs
(Contains: Wheat)
1 ounce
Cheese Roux Concentrate
(Contains: Milk)
1 teaspoon
Garlic Powder
Not included in your delivery
teaspoon (tsp)
Salt
1 teaspoon (tsp)
Olive Oil
3 teaspoon (tsp)
Cooking Oil
teaspoon (tsp)
Black Pepper
Nutrition Values
Utensils
Cooking Steps
• Adjust racks to top position and preheat oven to 425 degrees. Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Wash and dry produce. • Trim and halve zucchini lengthwise; cut crosswise into 1⁄2-inch-thick half-moons. Zest and quarter lemon. Halve, peel, and thinly slice onion. • Toss zucchini on a baking sheet with a drizzle of oil, salt, and pepper. Roast on top rack, tossing halfway through, until tender and lightly browned, 14-16 minutes.
• Heat a drizzle of oil in a large, preferably nonstick, pan over medium-high heat. Add panko and 1⁄4 tsp Italian Seasoning (1⁄2 tsp for 4 servings); lightly season with salt and pepper (you’ll use the rest of the Italian Seasoning later). • Cook, stirring, until golden brown, 2-3 minutes. Turn off heat; transfer to a small serving bowl. Stir in half the lemon zest. Wipe out pan.
• Once water is boiling, add cavatappi to pot. Cook, stirring occasionally, until al dente, 9-11 minutes. Drain and transfer to a large serving bowl; toss with a drizzle of olive oil (large drizzle for 4 servings). Reserve pot.
• Heat a drizzle of oil in pan used for panko over medium-high heat. Add sausage* and cook, breaking up meat into pieces, 1-2 minutes. • Add onion and lightly season with salt. Cook, stirring occasionally, until sausage is browned and cooked through, 4-6 minutes more. TIP: If you added any other items to your meal (apps, sides, and/or dessert), you can get started on them now!
• While sausage cooks, in a medium microwave-safe bowl, combine marinara, half the garlic powder (you’ll use the rest later), remaining Italian Seasoning, and 1⁄4 cup water (1/3 cup for 4 servings). • Cover tightly with plastic wrap and microwave until warmed through, 2-3 minutes.
• In a second medium bowl, combine cheese roux concentrate, remaining garlic powder, and 3⁄4 cup water (11⁄2 cups for 4 servings). • Heat pot used for cavatappi over medium- high heat. Add cheese roux mixture and bring to a simmer. Cook, stirring occasionally, until slightly thickened, 2-3 minutes. • Reduce heat to low and whisk in cream cheese, remaining lemon zest, and juice from one lemon wedge (two wedges for 4). Cook, stirring, until cream cheese has melted, 1 minute. Taste and season with salt and pepper. • Transfer to a small serving bowl; cover tightly with plastic wrap to keep warm.
• Carefully uncover red sauce and cream sauce (watch out for steam!). TIP: If needed, microwave sauces in 30-second increments until warmed through. • Serve pasta, red sauce, cream sauce, zucchini, sausage and onion, panko, Parmesan, and remaining lemon wedges family style and let everyone build their own pasta bowl.
Chicken is fully cooked when internal temperature reaches 165°.
Customer reviews
Review summary
Updated on Dec 2025- Flavor: Many enjoyed the variety, but some found the sauces lacking; the marinara was too sweet for a few, while others preferred it to the cream sauce.
- Ease of prep: Several felt the "bar" concept created too many dishes and steps, making it more time-consuming than a typical pasta dish.
- Suggestions: Consider adding more seasoning to the marinara and increasing the cream sauce quantity for better coverage and flavor.
- Portions: Some found it generous with leftovers, while others needed to add extra pasta for sufficient servings.
- Versatility: The option of two sauces was popular; many appreciated the ability to customize their pasta 🍝.
Reviews from our home cooks
We did love this meal but it did take more time to put all these separate things together. I didn't mind that night because I had extra time and it was delicious! Nice to have the variety of options :)
This just felt like it was trying to do too much. Choose one type of pasta sauce (red or white). I thought the red could have used more seasoning and the white just needed more volume (saucier). I ended up with 3x as many dishes as I would have with a standard meal.
Lots to decide on which way we wanted to try it. Both were delicious.
Loved the choice of the sauces. Easy to prepare and very tastie
Loved the option for 2 sauces. Develop more of these kinds of recipes
Put it all together in one and had it for 3 nights. Yum!
Love the ability to have two dishes at once, although most just mixed it all together anyway, Lol.
There was more than enough for us, and we saved the tomato sauce and some of the noodles for a second night.
I felt as if the pasta was bland but everything else was excellent
Not a fan of the chicken sausage option for pork would be so much better. Portion size - Now down 12oz bag to 6 oz bag and now a measly 4oz of pasta for 2 servings.... Maybe 1.5 portions at most
