This isn’t my normal crock pot style of recipe. Most of the time you’ll find me using recipes that cook at least 4 hours and most of the time mine run about 8 hours. Honestly, I want my food to cook for 8 hours so I’ll have 8 hours to do stuff – 8 hours to go away, to clean, to be free from dinner, or maybe just so I’m less likely to burn it to a nasty, crusty mess. But this cheesy sausage rotini is one of those pasta recipes that is a little different.
You’ll find this particular dish only takes 2-3 hours. So, what on earth is the point? You could easily make this on your stovetop and be done in 30 minutes. But maybe you shouldn’t…
Why Use the Crock Pot?
This Cheesy Sausage Rotini is done when the pasta is tender and has soaked up all the liquid. That’s it. The desserts in both of my cookbooks are also done in 2-3 hours. It seems kinda pointless to even use a crock pot for something like that, doesn’t it?
Not for everyone. I try to be able to post recipes for all my readers – find fits for all of you. And I know for a fact there are some of you who NEED your crock pot to be able to get dinner on the table – whether it takes 2 hours or 8 hours.
I have friends who live in RVs. When you live in an RV or you go camping regularly, you’ll find that having a decent crock pot is a great resource – most of the time, those recreational vehicles don’t come with an 8 burner stove and dual convection ovens. Having the ability to cook your dinner in the crock pot might be the difference between scratch food and McDonald’s (notice I didn’t say Chick-Fil-A, because that choice is obvious, ha!).
I have other friends that for whatever reason, have gone seasons without the use of their kitchen. Perhaps they are remodeling. Or perhaps their husband broke the knob off the stovetop and it no longer works. They might be making every single meal in the crock – and for these people I try to post breakfast, lunch, dinner, and even dessert recipes.
Then I have some friends who, like me, are somewhat obsessed with crock pot cooking and are tickled pink when they can cook dinner in the crock.
Timing it Right
Because this dish cooks so quickly, you’ll need to time it right – unlike me. Time it closer to dinner and if it finishes early, turn it to warm for a little bit.
However, if you mis-time it by about 2 hours and then leave it on the warm setting for about 3 hours because you’re helping your husband do maintenance on the chicken coop, it might get a little mushy – but never fear! It’s still very edible even in a mushy state.
Even my pickiest child was happy with this cheesy sausage rotini – and in my book, that is high praise.
Crock Pot Cheesy Sausage Rotini
Ingredients
- 1 lb ground breakfast-style sausage
- 1/2 cup chopped onion
- 2 tsp Italian seasoning
- 1 tsp garlic, minced
- 1 tsp oregano
- 1 can diced tomatoes 14.5 oz.
- 1 cup tomato sauce
- 2 tbsp sugar
- 1 tsp salt
- 2 cups water
- 1 cup cottage cheese
- 8 oz. rotini pasta
- 1 cup shredded cheddar cheese
- 1/4 cup parmesan cheese
Instructions
- Brown sausage and onion in a skillet. Drain.
- In greased 4-5 quart crock, combine all except cheddar and parmesan.
- Cover and cook on low 2-4 hours or until pasta is tender and has soaked up most of the liquid.
- Stir in cheeses and let melt.
Made this tonight and it was wonderful! Done in 2.5 hrs. I used turkey sausage, reduced fat cheeses and wheat pasta. I also used a can of basil/garlic/oregano tomatoes as it was what I had. Threw in some bell peppers and mushrooms for good measure, too. I use my slow cooker when camping too, it’s too easy! This recipe is definitely a keeper…thanks!
Always looking for great crock pot recipes to make my life easier. This one looks like it may be a winner.
I would love if you could stop by and share on my weekly recipe linky, Kids and a Mom in the Kitchen. I am always looking for new recipes to Pin and to try with my children.
http://totsandme.blogspot.com/2014/02/kids-and-mom-in-kitchen-74-dump-truck.html
Have a great day!
I popped this recipe over to my yumprint Crockpot list! That means it’s likely to get tried sooner or later, cause I use my yumprint list to decide what I’m making up! Thanks for sharing! HUGS
This looks so yummy! I used to throw everything in the crock pot raw and I learned the hard way I need to cook the meat of the stove first! I am glad you reminded of this before I made boiled hamburger again! This looks DELIGHTFUL!
Sounds (and looks) REALLY good! And camping??? Why did I never think of taking a crock pot camping?! Brilliant!
This type of meal is perfect for the nights you have sports practice and want to walk in the door and have dinner ready!
Made this tonight but I mixed bulk Italian sausage with ground beef { odds and ends from the freezer} and used gluten free rotini. It was a delicious cross between pizza and lasagna in flavor. As always, thanks for sharing Stacy!
Does this work the same way with gluten-free pasta (like rice or quinoa pasta)?
You have to be super careful with different types of pasta to make sure it doesn’t immediately turn to mush. So…I’m afraid to say yes or no. Give it a try and let us know how it turns out!
This sounds fantastic – can’t wait to try it! One question (as usual) – do you think I could sub sour cream or greek yogurt for the cottage cheese? My hubby and youngest are weird with the texture of cottage cheese and such, but I wouldn’t want to sacrifice the creaminess I’m sure it adds to this meal!
I would stick with cottage cheese – as it all melts together and mixes up, I doubt the “haters” will have a problem. I’m not a cottage cheese fan myself, but LOVE it in this dish.
Some times all I need is a 2-3 hour crock-pot recipe, making a crock-pot dinner after cleaning up from lunch and giving me time to teach piano. Perfect!
This sounds really good…especially when I saw that it’s breakfast sausage, and not Italian! Very nice QUICK crock recipe! Thanks !!