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.
See how we calculate recipe costs here.
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.
Hi, I am really excited to try this recipe but we are dairy free. Do you think that I can substitute the cream cheese for some almond milk and corn starch? Thanks!
Hmm, honestly I just don’t think that will have the same tangy/creamy flavor as the cream cheese. I’m not sure if there is a non-dairy product that is similar in that way because I don’t explore those products very often. :(
If you have a high powered blender try blending 1/2 cup of cashews with a few tsp. of lemon juice and a little hot water (just to the top of the nuts) until it becomes smooth and cream cheese-like. Add this to your tomato sauce and it will make it delicious and creamy. I use this for many recipes that call for cream cheese or heavy cream. Another idea would be to use the thick cream from the top of a can of coconut milk. This also works well.
I made this recipe for my partner and myself. I didn’t have tomato paste and substituted frozen spinach for cost, but it was great anyway! Thanks for the recipe.
Great recipe; the oregano really goes a long way with the cream and parmesan. I like to go heavy on the black pepper and add a little rosemary as well. I also find that chopping the spinach up a little before adding it to the sauce prevents it from clumping up into knots as it wilts. Great job with this one!
Ok, so I’m not being endorsed, nor am I affiliated with them, but I have been on that same struggle bus. I have torn into cans like a savage just TRYING to finish my da** dinner. My boyfriend bought this and I was initially totally against it, look how weird it is! NOPE. This sucker is pretty much my favorite kitchen implement.
http://smile.amazon.com/gp/product/B000AX13US?psc=1&redirect=true&ref_=oh_aui_detailpage_o01_s00
I’m a broke college student and I just made this for dinner and it is oh my god delicious. I’m not much of a chef but it was so simple (and fast) to make. I used whole wheat pasta in an attempt to be more health conscious and it turned out great. Thanks for the recipe! This is a new favorite!
Can’t wait to make this for dinner tomorrow. I’m going to throw in some chicken though, my kiddo and boyfriend aren’t big pasta eaters without meat! Lol. Thanks for the recipe!! :)
I’ve made this a few times now and it’s very good, but there’s just something extra I want to add. I don’t know what it is… but I feel the need to add something. I doubled the garlic and that was good, I also doubled the parmesan and it worked well, but still, perhaps I’ll add mushrooms or more cheese. It’s a great recipe though, and very cost efficient!
This looks absolutely delicious!!! Can’t wait to try it and add some mushrooms.
making this tonight and SO EXCITED. thank you for this bomb recipe!
how would the sauce hold up in the freezer?
Creamy sauces don’t hold up quite as well in the freezer (it may get a little dry and the sauce may clump a little upon reheating). But honestly, I’d still eat it! The flavor should still be just fine.
I make something like this with chicken and its always better after it has rested a bit. i just ad butter when im heating it up to loosen some of the sauce from the noodles.
This was soooo good. I added italian sausage and this was 10x better than the Penne Rosa you get at Noodles and Co. And 10x cheaper. This is going to be in the weekly rotation!
Hi! Found this on pinterest and I’m making it right this second. I had about four tomatoes and no canned tomatoes, so hopefully it won’t change the taste too much!
id love to know how that turned out for you. i have a bunch of tomatoes i need to use up but haven’t because im worried about the lack of juice. but i do add fresh baby romas to my recipe with the canned and its good!
Has anyone tried it with frozen spinach? Maybe adding less water for the tomato paste since the frozen spinach will bring some to the dish would work? Can’t wait to try and cook this! Seems delish!
I would thaw the spinach first and squeeze out the excess moisture. That way you don’t have to worry about altering the other ingredients. The only issue I’ve had with frozen spinach for recipes like this is that it can be a little stringy or just in really small chopped pieces.
Hey guys, I’ve used partially frozen spinach and it turned out fine. The excess water did not dilute the flavor at all. It just took a bit longer to cook. Also, I didn’t have enough cream cheese so I used some leftover plain Greek yogurt (~1/3 cup) for substitute. So much yum!
Hi Beth! What as fantastic website! I’m new to cooking and this recipe look easy enough that I can make it. Just a quick question- what kind of onions did you use? Yellow ? Thank you in advance .
Yep, just a simple yellow onion. :)
Hi! I am planning to make this yummy looking meal this week. My husband and I are not the biggest onion fans, so would it be safe to half the onion or does most of the flavor blend, thus making the onion not stand out too much? Thank you!
I think you could safely use half the onion and still have a very tasty dish. :) I didn’t think the onion stood out too much, but if you’re opposed to onion, you might notice it more.
Hey Haley, I didn’t have any onion on hand and I didn’t miss it amongst the fantastic flavor.