Why You’ll Love This Sun Dried Tomato Pasta Dish
Get ready for a show stopping meal that comes together in just half an hour! This creamy sun-dried tomato pasta with spinach and pignoli nuts is the perfect blend of simplicity and elegance, guaranteed to impress both family and guests. With a low fat silky sauce made with stock and blended cottage cheese, the yumminess of sun dried tomatoes, plenty of fresh spinach, and the creamy Pignoli nuts , lets this pasta dish transform an ordinary weeknight into a culinary celebration.
Ingredients You’ll Need
The magic of this pasta lies in its carefully selected ingredients:
- Pasta: Fettucini works wonderfully, but feel free to use your favorite shape
- Aromatics: Fresh garlic and shallots
- Liquid Gold: low sodium broth
- Flavor Enhancers:
- Calabrian chili flakes
- Parmesan cheese
- Stars of the Show:
- Sun-dried tomatoes
- Fresh spinach
- Pignoli Nuts
- Creamy Elements:
- Blended cottage cheese
- Butter
Top Tips for Perfect Spinach Sun-Dried Tomato Pasta
The Sun-Dried Tomatoes Matter
Pro tip: Opt for jarred sun-dried tomatoes packed in high-quality olive oil. The oil clinging to these tomatoes adds an extra layer of depth to your sauce and is used to saute your shallots and garlic.
Pasta Perfection
While you can use various long pasta types, fettucini, spaghetti, and tagliatelle work great.
Endless Possibilities for Add-Ins
Want to customize your pasta? Consider adding:
- Fresh mozzarella
- Anchovies
- Chickpeas
- Olives
- Mushrooms
- Chicken
- Shrimp
- Fresh herbs like basil and oregano
Wine and Broth Options
The recipe calls for low sodium chicken or vegetable broth but if you want to up your game and don’t mind the extra calories and alcohol, use a nice white wine. Souvignon Blanc would work great.
Substitutions and Variations
Flexibility is key in cooking. Here are some creative alternatives:
- Replace sun-dried tomatoes with fresh chopped tomatoes (note: sauce might require additional reduction and you’ll have to use plain olive oil to saute the shallots and garlic)
- Sprinkle fresh basil for an herbal twist
- Experiment with different pasta shapes
- Substitute full-fat cottage cheese or sour cream for the low-fat cottage cheese
- Ricotta cheese can be an excellent alternative for the cottage cheese
- Use chopped onion for the shallots
- Swap the Pignoli nuts for toasted, chopped walnuts or your favorite nut (or omit completely)
What are Pignoli Nuts?
Pignoli nuts, also known as pine nuts, are small, elongated edible seeds harvested from pine trees. These delicate, buttery nuts are a staple in Mediterranean and Middle Eastern cuisine. They’re packed with nutrients like protein, healthy fats, and minerals, and add a distinctive, rich flavor and creamy texture to dishes. I love them in this pasta dish…they add that something extra!
Leftovers and Storage
- Store in an airtight container for 3-4 days
- Reheat slowly over low heat
- Pro tip: Add a drizzle of extra virgin olive oil or a little sun dried tomato oil from the jar when reheating for renewed flavor
- Not recommended for freezing
How to Make Sun-Dried Tomato Pasta with Spinach and Pignoli Nuts
This is an easy recipe to pull together and great for a mid-week meal. Pull all your ingredients together and measure them out so this meal comes together quickly.
Prep your spinach by pull off tough stems and adding the spinach to a colander.
Bring a large saucepan of water to a boil over high heat add a large pinch of kosher salt. Add the pasta and cook according to package directions. Drain the pasta right over the raw spinach in the colander. This will wilt the spinach. It will continue cooking when you mix it into the sauce.
Meanwhile, heat the sun-dried tomato oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Just spoon it out of the jarred sun dried tomatoes. Add the sliced shallots and sun-dried tomatoes to the skillet and cook, stirring, until softened. It should take just a couple of minutes. Add the 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.
Add your cottage cheese to a small food processor or blender and blend until smooth.
Stir the blended cottage cheese and butter into the skillet. Add the cooked pasta and wilted spinach; toss to coat well.
I like to toast the pine nuts (Pignoli nuts) in a small skillet on the stove. Just add them to a non-stick skillet and heat over medium heat for a couple of minutes. Shake several times or stir with a spatula to be sure they don’t burn. They toast quickly so don’t leave them unattended.
Add the pignoli nuts and divide between two pasta bowls. Shave some Parmesan on top and serve with additional Parmesan and toasted pignolis.
Final Thoughts
This creamy sun-dried tomato and spinach pasta isn’t just a meal – it’s an experience. Simple enough for a quick weeknight dinner, yet sophisticated enough to serve at a dinner party, it’s sure to become a favorite in your recipe collection. Bon appétit!
Did you enjoy this recipe? If so, leave a rating and comment below. Looking for other pasta recipes? Try some of my favorites:
Baked Feta Pasta (uuifetapasta)
Baked Pasta with Turkey Sausage
Chorizo & Pumpkin Stuffed Shells
Creamy Garlic Parmesan Pasta with Peas & Prosciutto
Sun-Dried Tomato Pasta with Spinach and Pignoli Nuts
Nutritional information is only an estimate. The accuracy of the nutritional information for any recipe on this site is not guaranteed.
Ingredients
- 3 Oz. baby spinach
- 4 Oz. Fettucine, tagliatelle or spaghetti
- 1/4 Cup slivered oil-packed sun-dried tomatoes, plus 1 tablespoon oil from the jar
- 1/4 Cup halved and thinly sliced shallots about 1 medium shallot
- 2 Small Cloves garlic, minced
- 1/8 Tsp. Calabrian chili pepper flakes
- 1/8 Tsp. kosher salt
- 1/8 Tsp. Freshly ground black pepper
- 1/2 Cup low-sodium vegetable or chicken broth
- 1/4 Cup fat-free cottage cheese, blended
- 2 Tbsp. grated or shaved Parmesan cheese
- 1 Tsp. unsalted butter
- 1 Tbsp. Pignoli nuts, toasted
Instructions
- Place spinach in a large colander in the sink. Bring a large pot of water to a boil over high heat add a large pinch of kosher salt. Add the pasta and cook according to package directions. Drain the pasta over the spinach in the colander. This will wilt the spinach.
- Meanwhile, heat sun-dried tomato oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the sliced shallots 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.
- In a small food processor or blender, blend the cottage cheese until smooth. Stir the blended cottage cheese and butter into the skillet. Add the cooked pasta and wilted spinach and toss to coat everything in the sauce.
- Add the Pignoli nuts and divide between two pasta bowls. Top with the grated or shaved Parmesan. Serve with additional Pignoli nuts if you like. Serve with extra cheese on the side. Enjoy.
