Garlic Butter Pasta & Sautéed Spinach

You are going to love this simple pasta dish because it is perfect for a quick and easy weeknight dinner. All you need is a handful of ingredients to make this easy spinach pasta recipe that is a great meatless meal or healthy and easy side dish. 

This versatile dish features tender pasta and fresh spinach tossed in an easy sauce made with milk, garlic and a generous amount of Parmesan cheese. 

Why you’ll love this easy pasta dish

• It’s such an easy recipe with hardly any prep!
• Cooks quickly, you can have this on the table in about 20 minutes. 
• You’ve got options – use whatever pasta and leafy greens you have on-hand.

Ingredients

See recipe card for exact amounts and full recipe. 

Ingredient Notes

pasta – we chose to use rotini but you can use literally any type you have, just cook it as specified on the package. 

spinach – I use fresh baby spinach, any fresh spinach will work. 

Parmesan cheese – this is one cheese that we buy the block and shred ourselves. You can use pre-shredded cheese. 

butter – we use regular unsalted butter, if using salted butter you may want to reduce the amount of additional salt that is added. 

milk – I use milk to make this because we only use a small amount so I wanted to use something we always have on hand. 

garlic – for convenience we almost always use the pre-chopped garlic that comes in a jar, fresh garlic is also good. 

seasoning – we season this simply with salt and black pepper.

How to make pasta with sauteed spinach

1. Bring a large pot of water to a boil over high heat, drop the pasta and cook al dente according to the package directions, reducing the heat if necessary so it doesn’t boil over. See note below about when to do this based on what type of pasta you use. 
2. While the pasta cooks melt the butter in a large skillet over medium heat, add the spinach and cook until the spinach wilts, about 3-4 minutes, add the garlic and cook for a minute or two.
3. Add the milk, cheese, salt and pepper and cook until the cheese melts. Add the cooked pasta and stir to combine. Serve immediately.

Tips

• The spinach tends to clump together so I always separate it before serving. 
• When you start cooking the spinach depends greatly on what type of pasta you are using. If you are using pasta with a very short cook time, such as angel hair pasta, you will need to start when you put the water on. But if you are using a pasta that takes about 10 minutes to cook you will need to wait until you drop the pasta. You can keep the spinach sauce warm by leaving it on the stove over low to medium-low heat if it gets done before the pasta.

Substitutions and additions

• Spaghetti or any short cut regular pasta or whole wheat pasta are all good options. 
• Olive oil can be substituted or you could use a combination of butter and olive oil. Plant based butter will also work in this recipe.
• Don’t have fresh garlic? No problem, you can use garlic powder instead. One-half teaspoon equals about 2 garlic cloves. 
• Instead of milk heavy cream or half and half can be used for thicker sauce. You may need to increase the amount a little bit.
• Other leafy green such as collard greens, Swiss chard, or kale can be used instead of spinach, just sauté them until they are wilted. They will have a similar cook time to the spinach but may take a couple of minutes longer. 
• For a little heat add a little crushed red pepper flakes, how much depends on personal preference. 
•  Fresh lemon juice and or lemon zest can be added, maybe about a tablespoon. 
• To make this extra creamy about 2 ounces of cream cheese can be added. Just add it when adding the milk and make sure it is completely melted before proceeding. 

Is sauteed spinach healthy?

Sautéing spinach is a popular way to prepare it, and it retains many of its nutritional benefits while also adding flavor. Adding vitamin rich leafy greens like spinach to your diet is always a good idea. Cooked spinach contains more riboflavin and vitamins A, K and B-6 than raw spinach. Plus important carotenoids, such as beta-carotene, lutein, and zeaxanthin, become more absorbable in cooked spinach.

Spinach is a super food that has no fat, is low in calories, has more than 40 vitamins and nutrients, and has many health benefits to include:

• anti-inflammatory
• may reduce cancer risk
• boosts bone health
• may lower blood pressure
• promotes healthy skin and hair
• promotes healthy eye-sight
• may lower glucose levels

Storage and reheating

Store in an airtight container for up to 3 days. Reheat individual servings in the microwave. It can be reheated on the stove top, add a splash of water or milk for best results. The pasta will most likely break apart as you stir it while reheating on the stove.