Weight Watchers Pasta with Italian Chicken Sausage and Kale

Weight Watchers SmartPoints Recipe of the Day: Pasta with Italian Chicken Sausage & Kale
(356 calories | 8 8 8 myWW *SmartPoints value per serving)

I came across this recipe for Weight Watchers Pasta with Italian Chicken Sausage and Kale while searching for a kale recipe to make for this week's 38 Power Foods Blogging Group.

Weight Watchers Pasta with Italian Chicken Sausage and Kale

For the past eight weeks, a group of bloggers, led by Mireya of My Healthy Eating Habits, has been posting recipes using the healthy ingredients from Power Foods: 150 Delicious Recipes with the 38 Healthiest Ingredients (affiliate link) by Martha Stewart and the editors of Whole Living Magazine.

We're now up to ingredient #9 in the vegetables chapter: kale, a real nutritional powerhouse, rich in vitamins A, B6 & C, fiber, iron, calcium, and carotenoids.

I was introduced to kale several years ago while attending The Institute for Integrative Nutrition and have been a fan ever since.
 

Skinny on Weight Watchers Pasta with Italian Chicken Sausage and Kale

As soon as I read all the great reviews on weightwatchers.com for this simple pasta with Italian chicken sausage and kale, I knew I wanted to try it.

The recipe suggests you use rigatoni, but any short cut pasta (such as penne or ziti) would work. I think this dish would be tasty with whole wheat pasta too, which I plan to try next time.

Also, I bumped up the amount of kale from 4 cups to six with good results. Who knew such a simple recipe with just 5 ingredients could be so satisfying?

According to my calculations, each serving has 356 calories and:

8 *SmartPoints (Green plan)
8 *SmartPoints (Blue plan)
8 *SmartPoints (Purple plan)
8 *PointsPlus (Old plan)

Curious about Weight Watchers new myWW Green, Blue and Purple plans? Watch this short video to learn more:

Sausage Pasta with Kale Recipe Variations

spicier - add crushed red pepper flakes in with the sausage

no kale - substitute your favorite leafy green such as spinach, swiss chard, etc.

vegetarian - substitute drained canned white beans for the sausage, be sure to bump up the flavor with more seasonings such as garlic, oregano, etc.

more veggies - chopped tomatoes would be nice. Add them once the kale has begun to wilt

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4.8 from 5 votes

Weight Watchers Pasta with Italian Chicken Sausage and Kale

Simple, quick and easy, this Weight Watchers Pasta with Italian Chicken Sausage and Kale is a dinner your whole family will love

Prep Time10 mins

Cook Time20 mins

Total Time30 mins

Servings (adjustable): 4

Calories: 356

Author: Martha McKinnon | Simple Nourished Living

Ingredients

• ▢ 2 cups short-cut pasta such as penne or rigatoni
• ▢ 8 ounces chicken or turkey sweet Italian sausage
• ▢ 6 cups kale with tough stems and ribs removed, cut into bite-size pieces
• ▢ 1 cup chicken broth
• ▢ Salt and pepper to taste
• ▢ ½ cup shredded Parmesan, preferably Parmigiano-Reggiano

Instructions

• Cook pasta in salted water according to package directions.
• Meanwhile, remove sausage from casing and cook in a large non-stick skillet over medium heat, breaking up sausage as it cooks, about 3 minutes. Add kale; cook, stirring frequently, until limp, about 3 to 5 minutes.
• Add broth to skillet and scrape up browned bits on bottom of skillet with a wooden spoon; season with salt and pepper.
• Cover skillet and reduce heat to low; cook until kale is tender, about 5 to 10 minutes.
• Stir in pasta and heat through. Taste and add more salt and pepper if desired.
• Sprinkle each serving with about 2 tablespoons of cheese before serving.

Recipe Notes

I like to add some crushed red pepper flakes and Italian seasoning when I add the broth to give the dish a little more zip.

Be sure to remove the tough stems and ribs from the kale before chopping.

Serving size: 1-½ cups

8 *SmartPoints (Green plan)

8 *SmartPoints (Blue plan)

8 *SmartPoints (Purple plan)

8 *PointsPlus (Old plan)

Nutrition Facts

Weight Watchers Pasta with Italian Chicken Sausage and Kale

Amount Per Serving (1 -½ cups)

Calories 356 Calories from Fat 90

% Daily Value*

Fat 10g15%

Carbohydrates 32g11%

Fiber 3.5g14%

Protein 28g56%

* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.

Course: Main Course

Cuisine: American

Keyword: kale and sausage pasta, sausage pasta with kale

Did you make this recipe?Mention @simplenourishedliving on Instagram and tag #simplenourishedliving - we love to see your creations!

Source: Weight Watchers

*PointsPlus® and SmartPoints® calculated by Simple Nourished Living; Not endorsed by Weight Watchers International, Inc. All recipe ingredients except optional items included in determining nutritional estimates. SmartPoints® values calculated WITHOUT each plan's ZeroPoint Foods (Green plan, Blue plan, Purple plan) using the WW Recipe Builder.

For more great delicious kale recipes, check out the blogs of these talented food-blogging ladies who are participating in the Power Foods: 150 Delicious Recipes with the 38 Healthiest Ingredients (affiliate link) group today:

• Alyce @ More Time at the Table
• Ansh @ Spice Roots
• Jeanette @ Jeanette's Healthy Living
• Jill @ Saucy Cooks
• Mireya @ My Healthy Eating Habits
• Sarah @ Everything in the Kitchen Sink
• Casey @ Bookcase Foodie
• Bambi @ Adobo Down Under

Links to more Weight Watchers Friendly Kale Recipes

• How to Cook Kale - A basic 0 Points value recipe
• A Collection of Kale Recipes - from my files and around the Webs, many with Points values
• Raw Dinosaur Kale Salad - colorful and tasty with *1 WW PointsPlus, *3 WW Freestyle SmartPoints
• Lentils with Sausage & Kale - an easy one-dish dinner with *7 WW PointsPlus, *5 WW Freestyle SmartPoints

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