Pork Sausage & Zucchini Rigatoni Rosa
with Cream Cheese, Parm & Arugula Salad
- Wheat
- Milk
Fun fact: “Rosa” means “pink” in Italian. For our chefs’ version of rigatoni rosa, you’ll make a homemade pink sauce with a savory sausage base and a sprinkle of chili flakes (for a little heat!). Toss that with rigatoni and sautéed zucchini, then sprinkle Parmesan all over and serve with a lemony arugula salad. We promise: you’ll be blushing from all the compliments you receive on this meal.
Ingredients
6 ounce
Rigatoni Pasta
(Contains: Wheat)
2 ounce
Arugula
1 unit
Tomato Paste
1 unit
Zucchini
4 tablespoon
Cream Cheese
(Contains: Milk)
1 unit
Chicken Stock Concentrate
1 unit
Lemon
1 clove
Garlic
6 tablespoon
Parmesan Cheese
(Contains: Milk)
1 teaspoon
Chili Flakes
9 ounce
Italian Pork Sausage
Not included in your delivery
2 teaspoon (tsp)
Cooking Oil
1 tablespoon (tbsp)
Butter
(Contains: Milk)
teaspoon (tsp)
Salt
teaspoon (tsp)
Black Pepper
1 tablespoon (tbsp)
Olive Oil
½ teaspoon (tsp)
Sugar
Nutrition Values
Utensils
Cooking Steps
Wash and dry produce.
Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Once water is boiling, add rigatoni; cook, stirring occasionally, until al dente, 9-11 minutes.
Reserve 1 cup pasta cooking water (1½ cups for 4 servings), then drain and set aside.
Meanwhile, trim and halve zucchini lengthwise; slice crosswise into ¼-inch-thick half-moons. Peel and mince or grate garlic. Quarter lemon.
While pasta cooks, heat a drizzle of oil in a large pan over medium-high heat. Add zucchini; season with salt and pepper. Cook, stirring occasionally, until browned and tender, 5-6 minutes. Remove pan from heat; transfer zucchini to a plate.
Remove sausage* from casing if necessary; discard casing. Heat another drizzle of oil in same pan over medium-high heat. Add sausage to pan and cook, breaking up meat into pieces, until almost cooked through, 3-4 minutes (it’ll finish cooking in the next step).
Stir garlic and tomato paste into pan with sausage; cook until garlic is fragrant, tomato paste is well distributed, and sausage is fully cooked, 1-2 minutes.
Stir in cream cheese, stock concentrate, ½ cup reserved pasta cooking water (ladle straight from the pot if pasta hasn’t finished cooking yet), 1 TBSP butter, ½ tsp sugar, and a pinch of chili flakes to taste. (For 4 servings, use ¾ cup reserved pasta cooking water, 2 TBSP butter, and 1 tsp sugar.) Remove from heat.
Add drained rigatoni and zucchini to pan with sauce. Stir in half the Parmesan. Season with salt and pepper to taste. TIP: If needed, stir in more reserved pasta cooking water a splash at a time until pasta is coated in a creamy sauce.
In a large bowl, whisk together juice from half the lemon (whole lemon for 4 servings), 1 TBSP olive oil (2 TBSP for 4), salt, and pepper. Add arugula and toss to coat.
Divide pasta between bowls and top with remaining Parmesan. Serve with arugula salad and any remaining lemon wedges on the side.
Customer reviews
Review summary
Updated on Feb 2026- Flavor: Many loved the rich, creamy sauce and flavorful sausage, though some found it too salty or spicy.
- Ease of prep: Quick and simple to make, though removing sausage casings was time-consuming for some.
- Suggestions: Consider adding more zucchini or mushrooms; some preferred a different pasta shape for better sauce coverage.
- Portions: Generous servings often yielded leftovers, with many finding it enough to feed 3-4 people.
- Salad: The arugula salad divided opinions; some loved the fresh contrast while others found it too bitter.
Reviews from our home cooks
The pork sausage & zucchini rigatoni rosa was delicious. Next time I'll order an extra zucchini and add more garlic. This was an extremely good dish.
I was a little skeptical since my husband doesn't like rigatoni (or any large pasta). I substituted thin spaghetti. My husband went crazy over this meal! He absolutely loved it. I am the salad girl so I loved the arugula.
Has very clear instructions but I did not read the directions before starting to cook, and cooked the zucchini first then add the chicken sausage but everything came out very good.
One of my favorites. The flavors amazing and unique. Arugula salad was a great complement to meal. I am always surprised at how very fresh your ingredients are!
Very good! Everything was good and it didn't take long to cook at all. Next time I'll add a zucchini (to stretch it out and get more veggies) and drain the grease from the sausage.
My family loved this meal! The pasta is so rich and creamy and it's paired with the arugula salad that is so light and fresh.
This was a great meal. Baby and kid approved so that's a plus! Not a fan of lemon so I tried other options for dressing after trying it. I would sub Italian, or creamy balsamic instead. I also added red pepper crisps to arugula to add a little flavor. Overall a great meal!
Love the spice of the chicken sausage, sauce with the zucchini!
The main course was very good. There was more rigatoni than sausage so I didn't use it all. Now to figure out what to do with the leftover rigatoni. Wasn't crazy about the arugula salad. No real flavor.
The pasta is very tasty however, the rigatoni doubles in size when cooked. Penne would be more compatible in the recipe.
