Easy Italian Sausage and Mushroom Ragu with Gnocchi

Can you believe Valentine’s Day is in less than a week?? I can’t. I can barely believe I made it to my due date in December, popped a child out, and now have an eight-week old infant, so the fact that Valentine’s Day snuck up on me, isn’t surprising in the least.

I know some people are super against the holiday and go to great lengths to avoid all the pink, frilly Valentines, and heart-shaped candies; and then there are some who are ridiculously into the day, dress to the nines, and plan extravagant nights out.

I, happen to lie somewhere in the middle. I don’t need oodles of chocolates and conversation hearts, and I’m not big on venturing out into the crowds on the day itself, but I do, however, enjoy a pretty arrangement of flowers, and the opportunity to stay home and make dinner just the two of us.

Dinner at home varies each year, but it’s almost guaranteed that I will overextend myself and try to make something that ends up taking at least three hours more than I expected, smokes the house up, or just doesn’t turn out right. But! This week, I’ve partnered up with Lunchbox to bring you a Valentine’s Day meal that will include none of the aforementioned.

Today’s recipe is the PERFECT Valentine’s meal because it’s fool-proof, but seriously impressive, and of course, delicious.

I have become a major fan of Kroger in the last year for a million reasons, but most of all, because of all the awesome products they carry. In today’s case, I took some major help with the new Bertolli Riserva sauces and pre-packaged Carando Italian Sausages. If you have a local Kroger around, they’re offering up samples of both products, so I suggest your hightail it over there to get your fix, and then pick up a couple things for yourself. (You can call your local Kroger to find out when their tastings are scheduled for.)

In particular, I’d suggest picking up the Marinara with Parmigiano Reggiano and the Carando Mild Italian Sausage links to make this Sausage and Mushroom Ragu with Gnocchi.

First, the sausage comes out of the casing and is browned up in a super hot skillet, I like to use a wooden spoon to break up the sausage as small as possible, and after it’s all cooked, I even take it out of the skillet and chop it up even finer on a cutting board — a recommended, but not required step. Once all the sausage is cooked through and browned, I add in half a pound of finely chopped mushrooms a little bit of salt, and just splash of red wine. When the mushrooms, cook down, I add in a whole jar of the Bertolli Marinara with Parmigiano Reggiano, give her a stir, and let it all simmer for ten or so minutes until the flavors are mesh together.

While the sauce simmers, I quickly cook up some gnocchi (you can use whatever pasta shape you want), toss it with the sauce, and transfer it all to a serving dish. A final garnish of freshly grated parmigiano reggiano is the finishing touch right before you dig in.

This, is what I’d call the perfect date night meal….

Now, we are also offering up a $25 Kroger gift card to giveaway. Just reply with how would you make a date night meal with Bertolli Riserva and Carando Italian Sausages and hashtag #CarandoDateNight or #BertolliDateNight

Happy Valentine’s Day all!

This post sponsored by Lunchbox. All opinions are 100% my own. Thank you for supporting the products and brands we love and that keep this space going!