Spinach Pasta with Roasted Broccoli & Bell Pepper

This post is brought to you by DeLallo Foods.

Would you look at that? I made Christmas-colored pasta, completely on accident. I’m on a perpetual roasted broccoli and red bell pepper kick, you see, and got a hankering for some hearty pasta.

Here, freshly roasted broccoli and bell pepper collide with lots of delicious sautéed spinach, my favorite whole wheat linguine and some balsamic vinegar. Toss all that together with some magical reserved pasta water for a light, silky sauce, and we end up with high-contrast Christmas pasta. I love it.

This spinach pasta recipe is highly adaptable. Feel free to change up the roasted vegetables—just use whatever you have around, cut to similar sizes and roasted until tender. Or, skip the roasted vegetables for a very simple but very flavorful and hearty spinach pasta.

The recipe is easily made vegan and/or gluten free, and the leftovers are great, whether served chilled, at room temperature or warmed again.

My one request is that you serve this pasta with a great green side salad. It can be super simple with just fresh greens, your favorite dressing and a couple of add-ins. Just don’t skip it!

DeLallo, the makers of my favorite 100% whole wheat pasta, offer a product called Salad Savors that combine a few complementary salad mix-ins in one easy-to-grab package.

My fridge is full of Salad Savors right now, so I have no excuse not to include a side salad with each meal. The more greens, the better, especially during the holidays!

I had a hard time choosing which Salad Savors to use with this pasta, but ended up grabbing my favorite (called Crisp), which includes sweet red dried apple, shredded sharp cheddar cheese and toasted almonds. I just tossed those ingredients with fresh arugula and a simple, homemade balsamic dressing. It was remarkably easy and delicious.

Please let me know how this recipe turns out for you in the comments. I’m always so eager for your feedback, and hope you love my recipes!

Spinach Pasta with Roasted Broccoli & Bell Pepper

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Author: Cookie and Kate
Prep Time: 15 mins
Cook Time: 25 mins
Total Time: 40 minutes
Yield: 6 servings 1x
Category: Entree
Cuisine: Italian

★★★★★

4.8 from 112 reviews

This healthy vegetarian pasta features loads of spinach and roasted vegetables tossed with light balsamic sauce! Feel free to change up the vegetables or skip them completely for a simple, hearty spinach pasta recipe. Recipe is easily vegan and gluten free (see notes). Serve with a green side salad for a complete meal. Recipe yields 4 large or 6 more modest portions.

Scale

Ingredients

Roasted vegetables

1 large bunch of broccoli (about 1 ½ pounds), florets removed and sliced into bite-sized pieces
1 red bell pepper, sliced into 1-inch squares
1 tablespoon olive oil
Salt

Spinach pasta

8 ounces DeLallo Whole Wheat Linguine or spaghetti
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 shallot bulb, sliced very thin (about ½ cup, sliced)
¼ teaspoon salt
¼ teaspoon red pepper flakes
2 cloves garlic, pressed or minced
12 ounces baby spinach
2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
1 tablespoon lemon juice
1 tablespoon butter or olive oil
Optional: 1 ounce finely grated Parmesan cheese* (about ¾ cup, grated), plus extra for garnishing
Freshly ground black pepper, to taste

Instructions

To prepare the roasted vegetables (optional, skip for a more simple spinach pasta): Preheat oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit. Line a large, rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper for easy cleanup. Transfer the sliced broccoli florets and bell pepper to the prepared baking sheet, drizzle with 1 tablespoon olive oil and toss until the vegetables are lightly coated in oil (add a little more olive oil if necessary). Sprinkle with salt, arrange the vegetables in an even layer and bake until the broccoli is tender and caramelized on the edges, tossing halfway, about 25 minutes.
Once the vegetables are in the oven, bring a large pot of salted water to boil. Cook the pasta just until al dente, according to package directions. Before draining, carefully reserve about 1 cup of the pasta water. Drain and return the pasta to the pot.
To prepare the balsamic spinach, in a large Dutch oven (my 5.5-quart Le Creuset is perfect here) or large sauté pan over medium heat, warm 2 tablespoons olive oil until shimmering. Add the sliced shallot, ¼ teaspoon salt and ¼ teaspoon red pepper flakes. Cook, stirring frequently, until the shallot is translucent, about 3 to 5 minutes. Add the garlic and cook, stirring constantly, until fragrant, about 20 seconds. While stirring constantly, add several big handfuls of spinach at a time until they have wilted, then repeat until all of the spinach is in the pot. Once the spinach has reduced a bit but is still bright green in parts (this happens quickly!), pour in the balsamic vinegar and remove the pot from heat.
In your Dutch oven or in a large serving bowl, combine the roasted vegetables and cooked pasta with the spinach mixture. Add 1 tablespoon lemon juice, 1 tablespoon butter or olive oil and optional Parmesan. Drizzle in about ⅓ cup reserved pasta cooking water and gently toss to coat. Season to taste with additional salt (mine needed about ½ teaspoon more) and freshly ground black pepper. Divide into bowls and serve immediately, with extra grated Parmesan on top for bonus presentation points.

Notes

Change it up: Skip the roasted veggies for a simple weeknight pasta that’s full of greens, or change up the vegetables used.
Make it vegan/dairy free: Use olive oil instead of butter and omit the Parmesan. This pasta is great without the Parmesan, but you could add a light sprinkle of nutritional yeast for some cheesy flavor, if you’d like. Another option for extra savory flavor would be to add about ⅓ cup freshly toasted pine nuts or sliced almonds.
*A note on Parmesan: I always get a few comments on recipes that include Parmesan (“It’s not vegetarian!”) but Whole Foods actually makes a great animal rennet-free Parmesan. There’s plenty of flavor in here without the Parmesan, if you’d rather leave it out.
Make it gluten free: Choose a good gluten-free pasta (DeLallo makes one!).

▸ Nutrition Information

The information shown is an estimate provided by an online nutrition calculator. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice. See our full nutrition disclosure here.

This post was created in partnership with DeLallo Foods and I received compensation for my participation. Opinions are my own, always. Thank you for supporting the sponsors who support C+K!

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