Creamy Tomato Spinach Pasta

Creamy tomato spinach pasta is a delicious, decadent vegetarian dish that can make a weeknight dinner feel super special. This creamy vegetarian pasta is super easy to make and only requires a handful of ingredients, but it still feels like a treat!

If you haven't got the memo by now, simple pasta recipes are truly my jam and the creamier, the better.

This creamy tomato spinach pasta is uber-rich but so worth the carbs and calories! It's just the perfect midweek dinner, but you can also use it as a date night pasta dish for your vegetarian significant other (and yourself, of course).

Even though it doesn't sound like much when you put it like "pasta with spinach and tomatoes," there's more than meets the eye with this pasta dish.

You have your sundried tomatoes, toasted walnuts and grated hard cheese to transform an otherwise plain pasta dish into one of the best treats you've ever tasted.

Ingredients and substitutions

Pasta — I used casarecce pasta to make this pasta dish, but any type of short pasta would work just fine. Go with penne, fusilli or orecchiette — they are all excellent choices.

Olive oil — Good quality olive oil makes all the difference for sauces like this — go with the best you can.

Shallots — I like to make this spinach sun-dried tomato pasta with shallots because their mild flavour is perfect for this sauce. You can use red onion instead if you want.

Tomato paste — I don't add any chopped tomatoes or fresh tomatoes to the sauce to keep it creamy. Two tablespoons of tomato paste are all you need. Just make sure you use the best quality you can.

Italian seasoning mix — Using an Italian seasoning mix is so convenient, but you can also use a mix of ½ teaspoon each of oregano, basil, rosemary and marjoram.

Double cream — Make sure the cream is at room temperature before using it in sauces such as this. There's a risk of the cream curdling if you add it straight from the fridge.

Baby spinach — Use baby spinach instead of frozen not only because it tastes great but also because it only takes a minute to wilt. You can also substitute it with kale, but keep in mind that you'll need to cook it for a couple more minutes.

Walnuts — Toasted walnuts totally transform this spinach and tomato pasta not just because they're delicious but also because they add extra texture to the dish.

Parmesan — If you're a vegetarian, you should make sure you use a vegetarian kind of hard cheese. Unfortunately, Parmigiano Reggiano is not vegetarian.

How to make creamy tomato spinach pasta

• Bring a large pot of water to a boil, salt it generously, and cook the pasta according to the instructions on the package. Reserve two cups of water before draining.
• Meanwhile, heat the olive oil in a large, deep pan and saute the shallots for 2-3 minutes over medium heat until softened. Then stir in the garlic and cook for another minute until fragrant.
• Add the tomato paste, Italian seasoning mix and sundried tomatoes and allow the mixture to heat through.

• Stir in the double cream and a bit of pasta water and cook for 2-3 minutes until the sauce thickens.
• Add the baby spinach and cook for a further 1-2 minutes until it wilts a bit. Next, add the cooked pasta to the pan and toss well to cover it in the sauce. Add some extra pasta water if the sauce looks too thick.
• Stir in the toasted walnuts and grated parmesan (vegetarian hard cheese), season to taste and serve immediately.

Recipe notes and tips

• Don't forget to reserve pasta water before draining — this is true for most pasta recipes because you may need to adjust the thickness of the sauce.
• To make this recipe vegan, use a plant-based cream and skip the parmesan (or use a vegan version instead).
• You can add other veggies such as courgettes (zucchini) or mushrooms to the pasta. Saute the veggies with the onions before adding the rest of the ingredients for the sauce.

If you liked this creamy tomato spinach pasta recipe, you might also like some of my other easy vegetarian pasta recipes:

• Easy Roasted Chickpeas Pasta with Spinach
• Caprese Pesto Pasta Bake
• Pasta alla Cenere (Gorgonzola and Black Olive Pasta)
• Balsamic Caramelized Onion Pasta
• Blue Cheese Pasta with Spinach and Walnuts
• Creamy Lemon Gruyere Pasta

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