Once again, it’s a breeze to win! After enduring 6 days of an 8-day work week, I find myself feeling fatigued and famished. Luckily, I have a solution in the form of delightful skillet pasta recipes, such as the Creamy Tomato and Spinach Pasta. These dishes are ideal for moments like this, as they demand minimal ingredients, cook up in no time, and leave me satiated and content. 🙂
Regardless, Monday is approaching (once again) and the upcoming week appears to be quite lengthy. In hopes of minimizing your efforts and enhancing your dining experience, I believe this recipe will facilitate a quicker and more enjoyable dinner time for you. Enjoy!
What to Serve with Creamy Tomato and Spinach Pasta
The Creamy Tomato and Spinach Pasta recipe can be enjoyed as a standalone meal, but it can also be complemented with a side dish such as crusty Garlic Bread, No Knead Focaccia Rolls, or a light Simple Side Salad. To enhance the recipe further, you can include Garlic Herb Baked Chicken Breasts or sauté some Italian sausage in the skillet before adding the onion and garlic.
Can I Substitute the Cream Cheese?
To make a luscious and creamy tomato sauce, this variation of Creamy Tomato and Spinach Pasta incorporates a small amount of cream cheese and Parmesan. Alternatively, if cream cheese isn’t your preference, you can achieve a comparable outcome by adding approximately 1/4 cup of half and half or heavy cream.
Can I Use a Different Pasta?
Instead of regular pasta, whole wheat would be a great alternative for this dish as it not only adds extra fiber and nutrients but also enhances the overall nutritional value. Additionally, if you prefer a different shape, you can easily swap it with other short pastas like bowtie or rotini.
Can I Use Frozen Spinach?
Fortunately, I managed to find spinach on sale at a great price of $0.99 per bag (what a score!). However, if fresh spinach is too expensive for you, an alternative is to use approximately 8oz of frozen spinach that has been thawed and squeezed to remove excess moisture. Another delicious addition would be sliced mushrooms. Simply cook the mushrooms together with the onions and garlic at the start. Alternatively, a plain creamy tomato sauce would also be a tasty option. There’s nothing wrong with keeping it simple!
Looking for another dish to love? Give our Spinach Tortellini Skillet a try!
How to Make Creamy Tomato and Spinach Pasta – Step by Step Photos
Start by heating a pot of water until it reaches boiling point. Once it’s boiling, add 8oz. penne pasta to the pot. Allow the pasta to boil until it becomes tender, and then proceed to drain it using a colander. Meanwhile, while the pasta is cooking, you can begin preparing the creamy tomato sauce.
Begin by dicing a single onion and mincing two cloves of garlic. Place them in a generous skillet along with 1 tablespoon of olive oil. Proceed to sauté the mixture on medium heat for approximately 3 to 5 minutes, or until the onion becomes tender and translucent.
Combine ½ tsp dried basil, ½ tsp dried oregano, ½ tsp salt, a pinch of crushed red pepper, a sprinkle of freshly cracked pepper, and one 15oz. can diced tomatoes (including the juices) in the skillet. Stir everything together.
In addition, incorporate 2 tablespoons of tomato paste and ½ cup of water into the skillet. This will enhance the thickness of the sauce and intensify its tomato flavor. Keep stirring and cooking the mixture over medium heat until the tomato paste is fully integrated into the sauce.
Reduce the heat to low and introduce 2 oz. of cream cheese, cut into chunks, into the skillet. Continuously stir or whisk the sauce until the cream cheese completely dissolves into it. Initially, the sauce may appear slightly lumpy, but as the cream cheese melts, it will gradually become smoother.
After the cream cheese has melted, incorporate ¼ cup of grated Parmesan. Continuously stir until the Parmesan is completely melted and blended into the sauce.
Place 4 oz. of fresh spinach into the skillet. Continuously stir the skillet for 1-2 minutes, until the spinach wilts due to the heat from the sauce.
In conclusion, incorporate the cooked and drained pasta into the skillet and mix well.
Serve immediately and enjoy!
Presented adorned with an additional sprinkle of Parmesan and freshly ground pepper.
