Easy wins again! I’m on day 6 of an 8 day work week, so that means two things: I’m tired and I’m hungry. Quick skillet pasta dishes like this Creamy Tomato and Spinach Pasta are perfect for such an occasion. They require only a few ingredients, cook up super fast, and leave me feeling full and happy! :)
Anyway, tomorrow is Monday (again) and the week will be long, so I hope this recipe helps make dinner time a little faster, easier, and more enjoyable for you this week! Enjoy!
What to Serve with Creamy Tomato and Spinach Pasta
This Creamy Tomato and Spinach Pasta recipe is kind of a meal on its own, but you may want to add a side dish, like crusty Garlic Bread, No Knead Focaccia Rolls, or a light Simple Side Salad. You can also beef up the recipe by adding some Garlic Herb Baked Chicken Breasts, or browning some Italian sausage in the skillet in the beginning, before the onion and garlic.
Can I Substitute the Cream Cheese?
This version of Creamy Tomato and Spinach Pasta uses just a touch of cream cheese and Parmesan to make a regular tomato sauce ultra-rich and creamy. If you’re not into cream cheese, you could also add a splash (1/4 cup or so) of half and half or heavy cream to achieve a similar effect.
Can I Use a Different Pasta?
I used regular pasta, but whole wheat would actually be pretty good in this and would add some extra fiber and nutrients to make it a more well rounded meal. You can also switch out the shape for another short pasta, like bowtie pasta or rotini.
Can I Use Frozen Spinach?
I was lucky enough to get spinach on sale for $0.99 per bag (score!), but if fresh spinach is just out of your price range, you can add about 8oz. frozen spinach that has been thawed and squeezed of its excess moisture. This would also be really good with sliced mushrooms. Just cook the mushrooms along with the onions and garlic in the beginning. Or, hey, you could always do a plain creamy tomato sauce. Nothin’ wrong with that!
Creamy Tomato and Spinach Pasta
Servings 4Ingredients
- 1/2 lb. penne pasta ($0.75)
- 1 yellow onion ($0.28)
- 2 cloves garlic ($0.16)
- 1 Tbsp olive oil ($0.16)
- 1 15oz. can diced tomatoes ($0.59)
- 1/2 tsp dried oregano ($0.05)
- 1/2 tsp dried basil ($0.05)
- 1 pinch crushed red pepper (optional) ($0.02)
- 1/2 tsp salt ($0.02)
- freshly cracked black pepper to taste ($0.03)
- 2 Tbsp tomato paste ($0.08)
- 2 oz. cream cheese ($0.20)
- 1/4 cup grated Parmesan ($0.31)
- 4 oz. fresh spinach ($0.65)
Instructions
- Bring a large pot of water to a boil over high heat. Add the pasta and continue to boil until tender (7-10 minutes). Drain the pasta in a colander.
- While the pasta is cooking, prepare the creamy tomato sauce. Dice the onion and mince the garlic. Add the onion, garlic, and olive oil to a large skillet and sauté over medium heat until the onions are soft and translucent (3-5 minutes).
- Add the diced tomatoes (with juices), oregano, basil, crushed red pepper, salt, and some freshly cracked pepper to the skillet. Stir to combine. Add the tomato paste and a 1/2 cup of water to the skillet and stir until the tomato paste has mixed into the sauce.
- Turn the heat down to low. Cut the cream cheese into a few pieces and then add them to the skillet with the tomato sauce. Use a whisk to stir the sauce until the cream cheese has fully melted and the sauce is creamy. Add the Parmesan to the skillet and stir until it is melted into the sauce.
- Add the fresh spinach to the skillet and gently stir it into the sauce until it has wilted (2-3 minutes). Add the pasta and stir until it is well coated in the creamy tomato sauce. Taste and adjust the salt and pepper as needed. Serve warm.
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Nutrition
Video
Love this dish? Try our Spinach Tortellini Skillet!
How to Make Creamy Tomato and Spinach Pasta – Step by Step Photos
Bring a pot of water to a boil. Once boiling, add 8oz. penne pasta. Boil the pasta until tender, then drain in a colander. You’ll prepare the creamy tomato sauce while the pasta is cooking.
Dice one onion and mince two cloves of garlic. Add them to a large skillet with 1 Tbsp olive oil. Sauté over medium heat for 3-5 minutes, or until the onion is soft and translucent.
Add ½ tsp dried basil, ½ tsp dried oregano, 1/2 tsp salt, a pinch of crushed red pepper, some freshly cracked pepper, and one 15oz. can diced tomatoes (with juices) to the skillet and stir to combine.
Also, add 2 Tbsp tomato paste and ½ cup water to the skillet. This will help make the sauce thicker and with a more tomatoey punch. Continue to stir and cook over medium heat until the tomato paste has been mixed into the sauce.
Turn the heat down to low. Cut 2 oz. cream cheese into chunks and add it to the skillet. Stir or whisk the sauce until the cream cheese has melted into the sauce. It will look a little clumpy at first, but the cream cheese will eventually melt and the sauce will smooth out.
Once the cream cheese has melted in, add ¼ cup grated Parmesan. Stir until the Parmesan has melted into the sauce.
Add 4 oz. fresh spinach to the skillet. Stir the skillet until the heat from the sauce wilts the spinach (1-2 minutes).
Finally, add the cooked and drained pasta to the skillet and stir to combine.
Serve immediately and enjoy!
Shown garnished with another pinch of Parmesan and freshly cracked pepper.
What are the odds some plain Greek yogurt could replace the cream cheese? I just don’t happen to have any cheese on hand! (it’s a very sad situation in my fridge these days)
Hmm, if it’s full fat Greek yogurt, go for it! But, I’m guessing it’s not ;) It probably won’t be quite as creamy and might make the sauce more acidic, but if you’re not expecting the results to be exactly the same it might be okay. If you try it out, let us know how it tastes!
Melting cream cheese into a marinara sauce is one of my favorite kitchen tricks! THE BEST pasta sauce.
Think I’ll make this one later this week, I got some frozen sausages that would go well with it on the side.
Also you should totally get one of those top-opening can-openers, I swear you’ll never go back to the old kind once you try one.
Seriously the exact same thing happened to me with the can openers, so frustrating! I finally just spent a little bit more and got a nice one, I’ve had good luck so far!
Hi there. Love your site! Do you think frozen, chopped spinach would work in this if I thawed and drained it? It’s so much cheaper than fresh and I always have some in my freezer.
It would probably be okay. Sometimes frozen chopped spinach tends to be in really small pieces, but I’d definitely do it if I needed to save a penny or two :) Try to get the frozen spinach that is loose in a bag rather than frozen into a block. It tends to have a better texture.
Thanks! :)
Dang, love how east this is! Yum!
This was great! Made it tonight with zuke instead of spinach. Easy and just a little more filling than my usual tomato sauce because of the cream.
This looks really good! Everything except for the cream cheese, in fact. What would be good substitutes, or would this stand up without it?
A little bit of half and half or heavy cream will make the dish nice and creamy without using cream cheese. Try about 1/4 cup.
I used 3 patties of Laughing Cow 35 calorie cream cheese. Low calorie, lower fat, and it was really delicious.
This looks super yummy! Thinking of making this with some grilled chicken too.
Definitely going to try this one and veganize it for my brother. We both work in an Italian restaurant and he is always so bummed he can’t eat anything there, but this’ll fix his wagon. I’m gunna try and cook the spinach with some white wine with the sauteed garlic and onions before putting it all in the sauce, which I definitely recommend if anyone wants to really dress this dish up. Nothing special, even Franzia will do.
Would be good with Zucchini, too!
If you have experience preparing vegan food you may already know this, but if you put a handful of raw cashews in a Vitamix with a splash of water or vegetable stock, you can use it in place of cream in almost anything. Vitamix is worth the investment for anyone, but I certainly couldn’t cook vegan without one.
Just made this for supper. I used more cream cheese and parmesan and it was sooooo good. I didn’t think I had anything for supper and then saw this recipe and knew I had all of the ingredients! Can’t wait to eat the leftovers!
Looks fabulous! I make a similar version with feta cheese, may have to try this one next week :- D
Also, can opener recommendation…Pampered Chef. THE BEST can opener you will ever own. It’s worth the price.
This looks delicious – I can’t wait to try it! One way to prevent the spinach from flying out of the pan is to wilt for a few seconds in the microwave before adding it to the sauce. I just throw the spinach in a bowl and nuke for about 30 seconds. It brings down the volume of the spinach very quickly!
Or put the spinach in the strainer, then pour the pasta and water over it. Wilts really nicely that way too.
Another great recipe, Beth! As for the can opener, I recommend investing in a top-opening can opener. They are more reliable and the mechanics stick out less so they are less likely to get banged up
Looks great! I wonder if a chèvre goat cheese would work in place of the cream cheese? And buy a really good can opener, like an OXO one- lousy can openers are the pits!
Chevre would be *amazing* in this. …but then I love chevre in anything. ;) The first can opener that spontaneously broke was a good one. I had it for years and then suddenly one day it didn’t turn right. It was like a little elf snuck into my kitchen in the middle of the night and mis-matched the gears.
Hey Beth, instead of relying on a faulty can opener, why dont you buy tomato paste in a tube. In the long run its cheaper ’cause you keep it in the fridge after the 1st time you use it, & none of it ever gets wasted.