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Healthy and light pasta dinners don’t have to be a lot of work. In just 20 minutes you can have a fresh, delicious pasta ready for an easy weeknight dinner.
Date nights at home can be intimidating because maybe you don’t know what to make, or maybe you’re worried whatever you make just won’t be good enough if you aren’t used to cooking. Thankfully, there are so many simple pasta recipes that feel fancy and elevated, but are simple and quick to make.
No matter what your skill level with cooking is, you’ll be able to take on this recipe and create a dish worthy of being a date night dinner. Seriously, all you need is the four ingredients – spinach, tomatoes, olive oil, and pasta – and a few seasonings. It doesn’t require making any complicated sauces, and it comes together in under 30 minutes. All of which makes for a simple, delicious, and approachable dinner that just about anyone can cook!
What This Recipe Entails
It takes just 20 minutes to make this vegetarian pasta. Perfect for whenever you are looking for a meal that takes 30 minutes or less to make because you’re short on time or just don’t feel like cooking one night.
- Prep time: 5 minutes
- Cook time: 15 minutes
This recipe is best made with fresh ingredients as the tomato and spinach make up most of the flavor. So a good, juicy tomato makes a big difference. Using just one or two fresh ingredients helps keep a dish light and bright without adding much prep time or work on your part.
Tomato Spinach Pasta Ingredients
Using fresh produce along with some pantry staples and seasonings, this Italian spinach tomato pasta is very easy to make. We generally have all of these ingredients on hand as we cook with spinach and tomato frequently, but if you don’t, no worries! You likely already have everything else and just need to go get the fresh produce.
Here’s everything that goes into this easy pasta dish:
- Pasta noodles – spaghetti, linguine, or angel hair work best
- Extra virgin olive oil
- Roma tomatoes
- Baby spinach
- Minced garlic
- Dried basil
- Dried parsley
- Dried oregano
- Crushed red pepper
- Salt
- Pepper
- Grated parmesan
If you would like to add extra freshness to the dish, feel free to substitute fresh herbs for any of the seasonings. We always believe fresh ingredients are the right way to go when possible! But we also love the simplicity of this recipe and being able to cook it without a huge grocery run.
Lastly, if you don’t like (or can’t handle) added heat, leave the crushed red pepper out. It can always be added to single servings later for those in your family who do like some heat!
How To Make Spinach and Tomato Pasta
This easy vegetarian spinach tomato pasta recipe comes together in just 20 minutes, making it the perfect easy weeknight dinner recipe. Here are step by step instructions for how to make this healthy pasta dish:
- Start by cooking your desired pasta according to the package directions.
- In the meantime, heat 1 tablespoon of olive oil in a large frying pan over medium heat until shimmering. Add the spinach leaves in batches and sauté until wilted, stirring frequently until all the spinach has been cooked down.
- Then, lower the heat and add the tomatoes and garlic. Stir to combine, then season with basil, parsley, oregano, and crushed red pepper. Sauté until the tomatoes are slightly softened and the juices have released, about 3 to 4 minutes. Season with salt and pepper to taste, then remove from the heat and set aside.
- Once the pasta has finished cooking, strain and add the pasta to the frying pan. Add the remaining olive oil and an extra sprinkle of crushed red pepper if desired, and stir to combine.
- Serve hot, optionally topped with grated parmesan cheese.
The spinach and tomatoes cook quickly, so we recommend starting these once the pasta has already been boiling for a few minutes. You don’t want the spinach and tomatoes sitting in the hot pan for too long, otherwise they’ll become overcooked and mushy. Cook the spinach until it’s just wilted, then cook the tomatoes just long enough for them to become soft and juicy. Once everything looks ready, you can keep it warm over very low heat until the pasta is done cooking.
Storing and Reheating Leftovers
Any leftover vegetarian tomato and spinach pasta should be stored in an airtight container in the fridge. If stored properly, leftovers will keep for up to 3 or 4 days. Since there’s fresh spinach and tomatoes in this pasta, it won’t last quite as long as some other leftovers – so it’s best to enjoy it quickly!
When you are ready to eat your leftovers, reheat in the microwave for 1 to 2 minutes per serving (stir halfway through), or enjoy it cold. Don’t forget to add on any extra red pepper flakes or grated parmesan if you’re looking for a little extra flavor.
Why You’ll Love This Easy Vegetarian Pasta
This healthy tomato and spinach pasta is so easy to make. With just two pans and 20 minutes, you have a healthy and unique pasta dinner that is a great option to shake up pasta night at home.
We love to make this spinach and tomato pasta for a great easy date night dinner. It’s much more impressive than pasta with jarred sauce and feels more elevated – so it’s perfect for impressing your partner if you’re still early on in your cooking journey!
Once you’ve given this recipe a try, we highly recommend trying some easy variations. This dish can be easily customized to your tastes and spiced up to keep things interesting. Whether you want more or less tomato and spinach, or a different combination of herbs, you can easily adjust the ingredients to make this pasta your own! You can even take it a step further and add to it. If you are looking for more protein, a simple grilled chicken can do that. Or if you want a different flavor profile, try adding pesto instead of, or in addition to, the herbs.
It is really hard to mess this dish up – so it’s the perfect pasta recipe for any skill level. Plus, it allows for you to make a “fancier meal” with just a tad more work than pouring jarred pasta sauce over your noodles. Oh, and it tastes so much better.
Try our simple spinach tomato and olive oil pasta recipe and let us know your favorite variations in the comments below! Don’t forget to rate and share if you love this recipe.
Love this recipe? You may also enjoy these easy pasta recipes:
- Easy Baked Gnocchi Recipe For 2
- Vegetarian Tuscan Pasta
- Burrata Pasta With Blistered Tomatoes
- Creamy Gochujang Pasta
To browse more of our latest recipes and seasonal dishes, visit our homepage here.
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Spinach and Tomato Pasta
Ingredients
- 2 servings dry pasta noodles
- 2 tablespoons olive oil extra-virgin
- 2 to 3 roma tomatoes diced
- 5 ounces baby spinach
- 1 teaspoon minced garlic
- ½ teaspoon basil
- ½ teaspoon parsley
- ½ teaspoon oregano
- ¼ teaspoon crushed red pepper*
- Salt & pepper
- Grated parmesan cheese optional
Instructions
- Start by cooking your desired pasta according to the package directions.
- In the meantime, heat 1 tablespoon olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat until shimmering.
- Add spinach leaves to the skillet in batches, cooking until shriveled. Stir frequently and continue adding spinach in batches until it has all cooked down, about 5 minutes.
- Lower heat to medium low. Add diced tomatoes and garlic, then season with basil, parsley, oregano, and crushed red pepper. Sauté until tomatoes are slightly softened and the juices have released, about 3 to 4 minutes. Season with salt and pepper to taste, then remove from heat and set aside.
- When the pasta has finished cooking, strain and add cooked pasta to the tomatoes and spinach.
- Add the remaining 1 tablespoon olive oil and an extra sprinkle of crushed red pepper, if desired, and stir to combine.
- Serve hot, topped with an optional sprinkle of grated parmesan cheese.
Notes
Nutrition
If you have any questions regarding the information presented in this post, please refer to our Nutrition Disclaimer here.
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Good every time we make it!
Two Candid Cooks dishes this week. Still delicious!
So glad you are enjoying this recipe!!
Easy and delicious. A nice go-to for a solid, tasty meal with little prep!
Definitely a new addition to our meal list. I look forward to using it as a versatile base for lighter summertime pasta dishes! I second the addition of some pesto, along with some parmesan cheese and supplemental red pepper flakes (of course).
We enjoyed the pasta spinach and olive oil pasta last night. It was a nice change from the regular tomato sauce. Tonight we had some left over and while heating it up in the skillet, I added some pesto. That was a tasty addition. I would definitely make this dish again. Thanks for the recipe.
Pesto sounds like a delicious addition to this recipe!