Simple dinner recipes: 1-pot chicken sausage pasta and 1-bowl unstuffed peppers

Author and recipe developer Gina Homolka is adding another title to her collection of clean-eating cookbooks with simple recipes that use minimal ingredients and boast big flavors to make both cooking and cleanup a breeze.

Homolka shared two recipes from "Skinnytaste Simple" with "Good Morning America" on Monday and demonstrated how both dishes will help home cooks get dinner on the table faster: a one-pot pasta and one-bowl deconstructed stuffed pepper.

Check out the full recipes below.

One-pot Chicken Sausage Pasta

Serves 4

"Don’t you just love a one-pot pasta dinner? This simple dish is made with a flavorful Italian chicken sausage that creates a super-tasty sauce but with minimal ingredients. If you want to make it extra rich, serve topped with a dollop of ricotta. My daughter Madison gave this a big thumbs-up!"

Ingredients

28-ounce can whole peeled tomatoes

12 ounces sweet or spicy Italian chicken sausage links,* casings removed

2 garlic cloves, thinly sliced

8 ounces regular or gluten-free short pasta, such as shells, penne rigate or rigatoni

1/4 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese, plus more (optional) for serving

1 cup loosely packed fresh basil leaves, large leaves torn

*Read the label to be sure this product is gluten-free.

Directions

Set a fine-mesh sieve over a bowl and drain the tomatoes, reserving the liquid. Lightly press on the whole tomatoes to release any excess liquid inside the tomatoes and roughly chop them up with kitchen scissors or a knife. Pour the liquid into a measuring cup and add enough water to total 2 1/2 cups.

Heat a large heavy pot or Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Add 1 teaspoon extra-virgin olive oil, then crumble in the sausage. Cook, breaking the sausage up into small pieces with a wooden spoon, until the sausage is browned, 6 to 8 minutes. Add the garlic and cook until fragrant, about 2 minutes.

Add the tomatoes, reserved liquid, and the pasta, and season with 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste. Bring to a boil over high heat, then reduce the heat to medium-low so the sauce bubbles steadily. Cover the pot and cook the pasta to al dente and until the liquid is absorbed, 20 to 25 minutes, stirring every 5 minutes so the pasta cooks evenly and to make sure nothing sticks to the bottom.

Remove from the heat and stir in the Parmesan and then the basil leaves just to wilt. Serve with more Parmesan on the side, if desired.

Turkey Unstuffed Pepper Bowls

Serves 4

"I love stuffed peppers, but I don’t make them as often as I'd like because they take so much time to prepare. My simple solution is to turn them into rice bowls! It's so much faster and easier to simply chop all the ingredients I usually use in my stuffed peppers and just serve them over rice. They're also great for meal prep!"

Ingredients
1 1/3 pounds ground turkey (93% lean)
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1 small yellow onion, diced
3 small bell peppers (multicolor), cut into 1/2-inch pieces

3 garlic cloves, minced
8-ounce can tomato sauce
4 cups cooked white or brown rice, for serving

Directions

Set a large skillet over high heat and spray with olive oil. Add the turkey and season with the cumin and 1 teaspoon kosher salt. Cook, breaking the meat up, until the turkey is cooked through, about 5 minutes. Transfer to a medium bowl and set aside.

Using the same pan, heat 1/2 tablespoon olive oil over medium heat. Add the onion and bell peppers and season with 1/4 teaspoon kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste. Cook until softened, 5 to 6 minutes. Add the garlic and cook until fragrant, about 1 minute. Add the cooked ground turkey, tomato sauce, and 1/2 cup water. Cover and simmer, stirring occasionally, until the flavors meld and the sauce thickens, about 20 minutes.

Divide the rice among shallow bowls, top each with the turkey mixture, and serve.

"Skinnytaste Simple" Copyright © 2023 by Gina Homolka. Photographs copyright © 2023 by Eva Kolenko. Published by Clarkson Potter, an imprint of Random House.”