Creamy Spinach Pasta Garlic (Print View)

A velvety garlic cream sauce coats pasta with fresh spinach and parmesan for a comforting dish.

# What You'll Need:

→ Pasta

01 - 12 ounces penne or fettuccine

→ Sauce

02 - 2 tablespoons olive oil
03 - 4 cloves garlic, finely minced
04 - 1 small onion, finely chopped
05 - 7 ounces fresh spinach, washed and roughly chopped
06 - 1 cup heavy cream
07 - 1/4 cup vegetable broth
08 - 2 ounces grated parmesan cheese
09 - Salt, to taste
10 - Black pepper, to taste
11 - Pinch of nutmeg (optional)

→ Garnish

12 - Extra grated parmesan
13 - Freshly ground black pepper

# Step-by-Step Directions:

01 - Boil pasta in a large pot of salted water until al dente. Drain, reserving 1/4 cup of pasta water.
02 - Heat olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Sauté chopped onion for 2 to 3 minutes until softened, then add minced garlic and cook another minute until fragrant.
03 - Add fresh spinach to the skillet and cook for 2 to 3 minutes until wilted.
04 - Pour in heavy cream and vegetable broth, stir to combine, then simmer gently for 3 to 4 minutes.
05 - Stir in grated parmesan, salt, pepper, and nutmeg if using. Allow sauce to thicken slightly.
06 - Add cooked pasta to the sauce and toss to coat evenly. Add reserved pasta water if sauce is too thick.
07 - Plate immediately, garnishing with extra parmesan and freshly ground black pepper.

# Expert Suggestions:

01 -
  • It comes together faster than ordering takeout, yet tastes like you've been cooking all day.
  • The cream mellows the garlic into something sweet and almost buttery, making it impossible to stop eating.
  • Fresh spinach melts invisibly into the sauce, so even people who claim to hate greens ask for seconds.
02 -
  • Never let garlic sit in the oil without stirring—I learned this lesson the hard way when I stepped away for thirty seconds and came back to acrid smoke.
  • The cream sauce will taste thin when you first add it, but the pasta water and parmesan will transform it into something thick and luxurious; trust the process.
  • Reserve the pasta water before you drain; there's starch in it that binds everything together, and you can't get it back once it's gone.
03 -
  • If your cream breaks or looks grainy, take the skillet off the heat immediately and whisk in a splash of cold broth; this usually fixes it.
  • Don't crowd the pan when you add the spinach—work in batches if you need to, and let each batch fully wilt before adding more.

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