I always make my own sauces from scratch, whether it being a cream based, tomato based or pan sauce. Lately, being in a creativity funk, I decided to pick up a few different sauce mixes from Knorr.
Last night I used the Creamy Pesto sauce with penne, sausage, onions and peppers. (should have used chicken, but the sausage was defrosted)
I decased the sausages and cooked them in a sautee pan breaking up into pieces as it cooked. Strained it and placed to the side. Added a couple tablespoons of OO and sauteed the onions and bell pepper. Deglazed with a 3/4 cup of white wine, and reduced to half. Since there was liquid still in the pan, I altered the liquid for the sauce mix. Instead of 1 c. milk and 1/4 cup EVOO, I used about 3 T OO and a coup of milk. Whisked until the sauce began to thicken, then added the sausage and a 1/2# of penne. Mix together over med heat until the sauce completely thickened and serve.
The dish came out great, so instead of buying all the ingredients for a homemade sauce, I spent $2.50 on the mix.