This creamy sun-dried tomato pasta recipe has whole-wheat spaghetti, spinach and Parmesan cheese tossed in a flavorful sauce. It only takes 20 minutes to make, which means it's perfect for a busy weeknight dinner.
Wilting the Spinach
A quick technique for wilting the spinach is to place it in a colander and drain the cooked spaghetti over it. The residual heat from the spaghetti wilts the spinach without overcooking it.
Choosing the Sun-Dried Tomatoes
Look for oil-packed sun-dried tomatoes. Not only are the sun-dried tomatoes packed with flavor, we also use some of the flavorful oil from the jar to cook the onions, sun-dried tomatoes and garlic as the base for the cream sauce.
To Make This Vegetarian, Use Low-Sodium Vegetable Broth
We use either low-sodium vegetable or chicken broth in this recipe, but to make this recipe vegetarian, use vegetable broth.
Ingredients
- 5 ounces baby spinach, coarsely chopped
- 8 ounces whole-wheat spaghetti
- ½ cup slivered oil-packed sun-dried tomatoes, plus 1 tablespoon oil from the jar
- ½ cup halved and thinly sliced onion
- 3 teaspoon garlic granulates
- ¼ teaspoon crushed chili pepper
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon ground Black pepper
- 1 cup low-sodium vegetable or chicken broth
- ½ cup sour cream
- ¼ cup grated Parmesan cheese
- 1 tablespoon unsalted butter
Directions
Place spinach in a large colander in the sink. Bring a large saucepan of water to a boil over high heat. Add spaghetti and cook according to package directions. Drain the pasta over the spinach; toss to wilt the spinach.
Meanwhile, heat sun-dried tomato oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add onion and sun-dried tomatoes; cook, stirring, until softened, about 3 minutes. Add garlic, crushed red pepper, salt and pepper; cook, stirring, for 1 minute. Increase heat to medium-high and add broth; cook, stirring, until reduced by about half, about 2 minutes. Stir in sour cream, Parmesan and butter. Add the spaghetti and spinach; toss to coat well.
