Photo of Spaghetti with Creamy Spinach Sauce by WW

Spaghetti with Creamy Spinach Sauce

7
Points®
Total Time
25 min
Prep
10 min
Cook
15 min
Serves
4
Difficulty
Easy
A quick creamy pasta dish ready in only 25 minutes? Yes, please! This simple pasta dish is an Italian-inspired comfort dish with a creamy spinach and ricotta sauce. Requiring only five ingredients that are not pantry staples make this even more of a winner for a speedy weeknight supper. Make extra sauce and use as an omelet filling or baked potato topping later in the week. The simple addition of some chopped fresh tomatoes, sun-dried tomatoes or roasted red pepper strips add a pop of color and more veggie presence. Serve with a crunchy green salad to complete the meal. Peppery arugula is especially nice alongside the savory sauced pasta.

Ingredients

Table salt

tsp, for cooking pasta

Spinach

8 oz, baby leaves (about 8 cups)

Water

2 Tbsp

Uncooked whole wheat pasta

8 oz, spaghetti

Olive oil

2½ tsp, extra-virgin

Onion

1¼ cup(s), chopped, chopped

Jarred minced garlic

2½ tsp

Table salt

½ tsp

Black pepper

½ tsp, freshly ground

Fat free ricotta cheese

1¼ cup(s)

Instructions

  1. Bring a large pot of lightly salted water to a boil.
  2. Meanwhile, to make sauce, heat a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat; add spinach and sprinkle with water. Cook, tossing, until spinach wilts down and becomes tender, about 3 minutes; remove cooked spinach from skillet. (If your skillet isn’t large enough, cook in 2 batches.) When spinach is cool enough to handle, squeeze out excess water; set aside.
  3. Add pasta to boiling water and cook according to package directions.
  4. While pasta cooks, heat oil in same nonstick skillet. Add onion, garlic, salt and pepper; cook over medium heat, stirring often, until onion is very tender and light golden, about 6 to 8 minutes. Stir in spinach; toss until mixed.
  5. Drain pasta, reserving 1/2 cup of cooking water. Transfer pasta to a serving bowl; add spinach mixture and ricotta. Toss, adding 1/4 cup (or more) of reserved pasta cooking water to make a creamy sauce. Serve hot.
  6. Serving size: 1 3/4 cups

Notes

Chopped fresh or sun-dried tomatoes, or chopped roasted red peppers, make a nice addition to this recipe.