Prep the ingredients

• Dice the onion.
• Slice the smoked sausage.
• Shred a portion of the cheddar cheese.

Brown the sausage

• Heat the oil in a large skillet.
• Brown the smoked sausage really well, without rushing, to get plenty of color.
• Remove the sausage but leave the drippings in the pan.

Soften the onion

• Add the diced onion to the pan and cook until softened, scraping up the brown bits from the bottom.

Add pasta, sauce and water

• Add the penne pasta, the entire jar of alfredo sauce and the water to the pan.

Simmer with broccoli and sausage

• Add the frozen broccoli and the smoked sausage back into the pan.
• Bring everything to a boil, then cover and simmer, stirring occasionally, until the pasta is tender.

Melt in the cheddar

• Stir in the shredded cheddar cheese.
• Let everything sit so the sauce can thicken.