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    Home » Weight Watcher Recipes

    Rigatoni with Sausage and Kale

    Published: Feb 9, 2012 · Modified: Oct 7, 2022 by Jenna · This post may contain affiliate links · 11 Comments

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    A quick and easy weeknight dinner that comes together in under 30 minutes with hearty pasta, sausage, and kale. Save this recipe for a date night when you don't want to go out to eat.

    I have to admit that kale isn’t a green I reach for quite often, but after trying it in this rigatoni and sausage pasta recipe, I’ll be using it more often now. Below is a list of different sausage that would work well with this recipe, and I’m excited to them all.  *See recipe notes below. You can change this pasta up in so many ways and make it to however you like it. I’m thinking full-on carbonara here folks. *Adds to my bucket list of recipes to try next. 

    Rigatoni with Sausage and Kale

    This is one of the reasons I enjoy being a food blogger. As I’m sitting here typing this blog post out, I get more and more recipe ideas floating around in my head that I need to stop and write them out so I remember them. 

    Benefits of Kale 

    I’m a spinach or romaine fan but kale has many health benefits and has been deemed a superfood. Kale is loaded with antioxidants such as quercetin and kaempferol. It is an excellent source of vitamin c and vitamin k. It can also help lower cholesterol, which will reduce the risk of heart disease.  

    How to make Rigatoni with Kale and Sausage 

    1. Cook rigatoni in salted water according to package directions. 
    2. Meanwhile, remove sausage from casing and cook in a large nonstick skillet over medium heat, breaking up sausage as it cooks, about 3 minutes. 
    3. Add kale; cook, stirring frequently, until limp, about 3 to 5 minutes. 
    4. Add broth to skillet and scrape up browned bits on the bottom of skillet with a wooden spoon; season with salt and pepper. 
    5. Cover skillet and reduce heat to low; cook until kale is tender, about 5 to 10 minutes. Stir in rigatoni; heat through. Sprinkle each serving with about 2 tablespoons of cheese before serving. Yields about 1 ½ cups per serving.
    Rigatoni with Sausage and Kale

    Tips for Rigatoni with Sausage and Kale 

    Pasta Rigatoni is the suggested pasta of choice the recipe below uses but that isn’t the only pasta you can use. Try spaghetti or penne pasta or whatever else you have in your pantry and follow the instructions on the back of your box for cooking.  If you're following the purple plan myWW plan sub out whole wheat pasta.

    Sausage: I used Jennie-O ground turkey sausage for this. Like pasta, there are so many flavors of turkey sausage such as breakfast turkey sausage, Italian style turkey sausage, kielbasa, andouille, chorizo, the list goes on and on! 

    Kale:  If you don’t like kale, spinach would be another good green that would work in this pasta. 

    Other Pasta Recipes 

    Chicken Mozzarella Pasta - Pioneer Woman 

    Cheeseburger Pasta 

    Shrimp and Pea Orzo Pasta Salad 

    Italian Pasta Salad 

    Creamy Tomato and Shrimp Pasta 

    *If you make this recipe please comment and rate the recipe below to let everyone know how it is, or tag me on Instagram! If you want to upload a photo you can do that on Pinterest. Just find the post for it. 

    Recipe from adapted from Weight Watchers

    Sausage and Kale Pasta
    Print

    Rigatoni with Sausage and Kale


    ★★★★★

    4.8 from 6 reviews

    • Author: Jenna
    • Yield: 4 1x
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    Ingredients

    • 2 cup(s) uncooked rigatoni
    • 8 oz uncooked turkey sausage (any kind),
    • 3 cup(s) uncooked kale, roughly chopped into bite-sized pieces
    • 1 cup(s) canned chicken broth
    • ¼ tsp black pepper
    • ¼ tsp table salt
    • ½ cup(s) shredded Parmesan cheese, Parmigiano-Reggiano recommended

    Instructions

    1. Cook rigatoni in salted water according to package directions.

    2. Meanwhile, remove sausage from casing and cook in a large nonstick skillet over medium heat, breaking up sausage as it cooks, about 3 minutes. 

    3. Add kale; cook, stirring frequently, until limp, about 3 to 5 minutes. 

    4. Add broth to skillet and scrape up browned bits on the bottom of skillet with a wooden spoon; season with salt and pepper. 

    5. Cover skillet and reduce heat to low; cook until kale is tender, about 5 to 10 minutes. Stir in rigatoni; heat through. Sprinkle each serving with about 2 tablespoons of cheese before serving.

    6. Yields about 1 ½ cups per serving.


    Notes

    MyWW points: Blue: 8; Green: 8; Purple: 8

    My WW Personal Points: 8 Click here to see in recipe builder (will have to log in) 

    Recipe adapted from WW 

    • Category: Easy
    • Method: Stovetop
    • Cuisine: American

    Nutrition

    • Serving Size: 1 ½ cups
    • Calories: 298
    • Sugar: .7g
    • Fat: 11g
    • Saturated Fat: 3.6g
    • Carbohydrates: 24.3g
    • Fiber: 1.9g
    • Protein: 22.9g

    Keywords:

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    Tag @recipediariesww on Instagram

    More Weight Watcher Recipes

    • Mixed Lemon Berry Muffins
    • Fruit and Yogurt Parfaits
    • Baked Spaghetti and Meatballs Casserole
    • Easy Creamy Chicken Pot Pie Soup

    Reader Interactions

    Comments

    1. Rachel Morgan says

      October 14, 2022 at 9:00 am

      Loved it. I had some kale & sausage that I needed to use up & found your recipe. I did add a little heavy cream to it and it was amazing! Thanks ☺️

      ★★★★★

    2. Denise says

      September 26, 2022 at 5:33 pm

      Super easy! I used vegan sausage and it was delicious.

      ★★★★★

    3. Trish says

      August 03, 2021 at 7:38 pm

      Absolutely LOVED THIS!!! So did my kids AND my husband! Definitely going in recipe rotation!

      ★★★★★

    4. Milagro Ramirez says

      April 12, 2021 at 7:48 pm

      Hi!! This is my first recipe of yours I am using as inspiration but it won't be my last!! I had to make it with Rigatoni, and ground beef and queso fresco. LOL so different but inspired by!! It had kale!! It was delicious!!

      ★★★★

    5. Jenna says

      September 14, 2020 at 11:39 am

      Thanks Melissa! Glad you liked it.

    6. Melissa Metzger says

      September 14, 2020 at 9:32 am

      This was a winner for our family last night! Quick, easy, and tasty. The only change I made was using two types of kale (curly and Lacinato), and added some fresh basil from the garden. This recipe is going into the rotation for sure. 🙂 Thank you!

      ★★★★★

    7. Jenna says

      August 16, 2020 at 2:24 pm

      Glad you could use up some of that kale and you liked it!

    8. Miranda says

      August 16, 2020 at 1:17 pm

      Received some fresh kale from a community garden and came upon this recipe searching for uses. It turned out fantastic and will definitely be one we add to our make often collection!! Thank you for sharing

    9. Jenna says

      June 18, 2020 at 7:34 am

      Thanks Alba!

    10. Alba in CA says

      June 17, 2020 at 11:04 pm

      Hi Jenna from Fargo, ND! I loved this recipe! It was easy and quick and healthy!

      I thank you for it!

      ★★★★★

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    Hey, I'm Jenna! I'm a graphic designer, photographer, and home cook from From Fargo ND. My air fryer is my favorite kitchen appliance to cook with. I created this blog to share recipe tips and tricks with everyone, enjoy!

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