This Keto Creamy Tuscan Zucchini Noodles with Sausage is packed full of flavor and veggie goodness for a deliciously low-carb one-pan dinner!
Weeknight dinner for the win! These Keto Creamy Tuscan Zucchini Noodles with Sausage are packed full of flavor, veggie goodness, and smoky Roasted Garlic Smoked Sausage from our friends over at Kiolbassa Smoked Meats.
We love the roasted garlic flavor in this dish as it pairs perfectly with the Italian flavors of the sun-dried tomatoes, parmesan, and basil. If you can't find this flavor feel free to swap it out for any other smoked sausage, maybe add in a few roasted cloves of garlic to make up for it though!
Let's get to the ins and outs of the recipe!
INGREDIENTS You'll Need:
- 1 (13-ounce) package Kiolbassa Roasted Garlic sausage - you can also use any other sausage you like
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 3 garlic cloves
- 1 cup heavy cream
- ¼ cup chicken broth
- 1 teaspoon Italian seasoning
- ½ cup freshly grated parmesan cheese
- 1 cup fresh spinach
- ½ cup sun-dried tomatoes
- Sea salt and freshly cracked black pepper to taste
- 12 ounces zucchini noodles
- Fresh basil
Steo-by-step cooking instructions:
- Heat the olive oil over medium heat in a large (10-12”) cast-iron skillet. Once hot add in the sliced Kiolbassa and cook 2-3 minutes per side until browned. Remove and set aside.
- Add the garlic to the pan and cook, stirring, for 30 seconds until fragrant.
- Add the heavy cream, chicken broth, Italian seasoning, and parmesan cheese to the skillet. Increase the heat to medium-high and whisk until the sauce starts to bubble and thicken.
- Add in the spinach and sun-dried tomatoes. Bring to a simmer until the spinach is wilted. Add the sausage back to the skillet and add in the zucchini noodles. Cook 2-3 minutes until hot. Season with salt and pepper to taste and serve.
CAN YOU USE OTHER VEGGIE NOODLES IN PLACE OF ZUCCHINI?
Yes, you can! This dish is delicious with spaghetti squash as well! To make spaghetti squash noodles we simply cut the ends off of the squash, pop it in the microwave for 10-15 minutes, then cut it open, scoop out the seeds, then shred it into noodles. Do note that swapping the zucchini for spaghetti squash will change the nutritional breakdown.
WHAT IF I DON'T HAVE A SPIRALIZER?
Neither do we! We typically purchase pre-spiralized veggies in the produce department of our local grocer. You can also simply use a vegetable peeler to create long strips of spiraled zucchini "noodles" as well! No need for a fancy kitchen gadget!
HOW TO ROAST GARLIC
If you're not using roasted garlic sausage then we would suggest swapping the regular garlic cloves in the recipe for roasted ones. Here's a quick how-to:
- Cut the top off of a whole bulb of garlic, you should be able to see the tops of the cloves exposed
- Drizzle with olive oil
- Sprinkle with salt and pepper
- Wrap tightly in aluminum foil or parchment paper
- Bake at 400° F for 30 minutes
You can store the leftover roasted garlic in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 3 days. To make them last longer, pour olive oil over the cloves until they're submerged. They'll keep this way for up to a week. Try mashing them into butter for a steak, scrambling them into eggs, or mashing them into a vinaigrette for a delicious salad dressing!
If you want a full tutorial on how to make a large batch of roasted garlic, check out our guide here.
CAN I USE FROZEN SPINACH?
You can, but we wouldn't. If that's all you have on hand feel free to use it but we like how fresh spinach doesn't get mushy as frozen spinach does. The block spinach is the mushiest but if you have whole-leaf frozen spinach it should work just fine!
TROUBLESHOOTING: MY SAUCE IS WATERY
You probably didn't simmer the sauce long enough for it to reduce. No worries though as we have a great hack that can fix this in 2.2 seconds! Simply whisk in some cream cheese to the sauce to thicken it up. Heck, maybe even do this anyways!
If you don't have cream cheese on hand try turning up the stove up to medium-high heat. Allow the sauce to simmer for a few more minutes.
HOW TO MAKE THIS KETO CREAMY TUSCAN ZUCCHINI NOODLES RECIPE DAIRY-FREE:
If you'd like this recipe to be dairy-free make the following swaps:
- Heavy cream --> use plain, unsweetened almond milk
- Parmesan cheese --> use a dairy-free alternative such as Violife
WHAT ARE THE NUTRITIONAL FACTS FOR THIS KETO / LOW CARB EASY ZUCCHINI NOODLE RECIPE?
As always, you can find the full nutritional breakdown including the carb count (total carbs and net carbs) at the bottom of the recipe card. You can find the serving size/yield at the top of the recipe card. You should always double-check your specific ingredients as different brand's ingredients may have different values.
OTHER LOW-CARB/KETO Sausage RECIPES TO CHECK OUT…
- “Potato” Salad with Smoked Sausage
- Cheesy Cabbage Sausage Skillet
- Pierogi Sausage Skillet
- Garlic Parmesan Sausage Skillet
- Breakfast Sausage Hot Pockets
- Jambalaya
Keto Creamy Tuscan Zucchini Noodles with Sausage
Ingredients
- 1 package Kiolbassa Roasted Garlic sausage cut into rounds
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 3 garlic cloves minced
- 1 cup heavy cream
- ¼ cup chicken broth
- 1 teaspoon Italian seasoning
- ½ cup parmesan cheese
- 1 cup spinach chopped
- ½ cup sun-dried tomatoes
- Salt and pepper to taste
- 12 ounces zucchini noodles
- Fresh basil for topping
Instructions
- Heat the olive oil over medium heat in a large (10-12”) cast-iron skillet. Once hot add in the sliced Kiolbassa and cook 2-3 minutes per side until browned. Remove and set aside.
- Add the garlic to the pan and cook, stirring, for 30 seconds until fragrant.
- Add the heavy cream, chicken broth, Italian seasoning, and parmesan cheese to the skillet. Increase the heat to medium-high and whisk until the sauce starts to bubble and thicken.
- Add in the spinach and sun-dried tomatoes. Bring to a simmer until the spinach is wilted. Add the sausage back to the skillet and add in the zucchini noodles. Cook 2-3 minutes until hot. Season with salt and pepper to taste and serve.
Theresa says
You didn't say how to cook the zucchini noodles... Precook them or if the 2-3 minutes at the end will cook them enough. Never tried zucchini no noodles before.
Alex Lester says
Hi Theresa, the zucchini noodles are raw when they go in at the end for the 2-3 minutes. If you cook them longer than that they end up too watery.
Theresa says
What is the serving size that the macros are based on... Or is this the whole pan?
Alex Lester says
Hi Theresa! The nutrition info listed is always for one serving. Hope this helps!
Tricia m McConegly says
But it does not say what ONE serving size is
Cast Iron Keto says
Unfortunately, that’s not how recipes work. Unlike a packaged food product that is made by a single company, recipes can’t provide reliable serving weights due to the fluctuations in how different people measure and cook. To get a reliable serving size you’ll need to weigh your final dish then divide by the number of servings. You can also simply eyeball 1/4th of the recipe. Hope this helps!
Tom says
Holy crap Batman! This recipe is PHENOMENAL!!! I was licking the plate clean! I'm very new to Keto meals and this one has inspired me to try more.
So glad I came upon your website! Going to make the Pita chips tommorow!
Keep cooking and creating!!!!!
Anne Marie says
Delicious - will be making this a couple times a month. Fast and easy to make and tasted like gourmet keto.
CONNIE SAYLOR says
This was one of my favorite recipes. I tried it today and it was amazing. I added onions but just because I like onions and it still was sooooo good. Thank you Cast Iron Skillet for the recipe.
April says
Yum! I used Sabatino’s chicken mozzarella sausage from Costco and left out the sundried tomatoes, which cut the net carbs to 6! I followed the rest of the recipe exactly, and it was so delicious! Definitely one that I will be repeating. Thank you!!
Ellen says
SO glad I tried this. We give it two thumbs way up!!! Absolutely delicious. I used the jalapeno sausage I had on hand, so I roasted my own garlic for the recipe. Subbed mushrooms for the sun dried tomatoes and whisked in 1 oz cream cheese at the end. Going on the regular (maybe weekly?!) rotation. Thank you so much for this recipe!
Kelly burgess says
What can I use instead of the heavy cream? What would be a good substitute?
Cast Iron Keto says
Coconut milk would be the closest substitute.
Kris says
Followed the recipe exactly. A tad bit bland because of the zucchini noodles, but a little added salt would enhance the flavor. Also, I’d cut the longer zoodles. I’ve already recommended this recipe to my friends.
Sarah S. says
How many sausages is 1 package of sausage? My pack has 12!
Tanya says
It says sun dried tomatoes are not keto and will throw you out of ketosis fast even a small amount. Will this still taste good without them?
Cast Iron Keto says
We're not sure who says sun-dried tomatoes aren't appropriate for a low-carb diet. As you can see in the nutritional information, there are 9g net carbs per serving which fits perfectly within most keto diets.
Holly says
I bet this would be good even without the zucchini noodles and served over cauliflower rice!
Teresa says
I've made this recipe several times changing it up once with chicken and once with pork, although my favorite is still sausage. It's so delicious my father-in-law asked me for the recipe.
Christy says
How much is one serving ?