Green Pasta Sauce Recipe

Super green pasta in a bowl with a fork on the side from the side view.

This Green Pasta Sauce is a nutritious, lighter alternative to pesto that you can make in under 30 minutes. Packed with nutty parmesan cheese, vibrant spinach, and hints of lemon and garlic, this sauce is the perfect accompaniment to your favorite type of pasta. Enjoy this pasta dish alone as a light lunch or dinner, or serve it as a side to a number of main dishes.

Course Vegetarian Pasta

Cuisine American/Italian

Diet Vegetarian

Prep Time 5

Cook Time 20

Total Time 25

Servings

Calories 557kcal

Author Aysegul Sanford

Ingredients

1 pound spaghetti linguine, or any other pasta shape you have on hand
2 tablespoons olive oil
3 cloves garlic minced
10 oz. fresh baby spinach leaves
½ cup shredded parmesan cheese plus more for garnish - 50 gr.
½ teaspoon kosher salt
½ teaspoon black pepper
2 tablespoons lemon juice
½ teaspoon lemon zest optional

US Customary - Metric

Instructions

Cook the pasta: Fill a large pot with water and add a few tablespoons of salt. Bring to a boil, add pasta and cook until al dente, following the package instructions. Reserve 1/2 cup of pasta water and drain the rest. Return the pasta to the pot and set it aside.
Saute the garlic: Meanwhile, heat olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add garlic and saute for 1 minute while stirring constantly.
Add the spinach: Add the spinach leaves, salt, and pepper to the skillet. Cook, tossing often until the spinach is wilted and has lost most of its volume.
Transfer to a food processor: Transfer the now-cooked spinach to the bowl of a food processor*. Add in the parmesan cheese, lemon juice, and the reserved pasta water.
Blend: Process until fully pureed, stopping and scraping the sides as necessary. Give it a taste and add more seasoning, if desired.
Combine with the pasta: Pour the spinach pasta sauce over the cooked pasta, and use tongs to give it a gentle toss to combine.
Serve: Serve warm with extra parmesan cheese on top and lemon zest, if preferred.

Notes

Cream cheese: We wanted a green pasta sauce that is more on the healthier side, but if you are after an extra rich, creamy pasta, you can add two ounces of room-temperature cream cheese (or ricotta cheese) into the food processor with the rest of the ingredients.
Make ahead: You can make this green spinach pasta sauce up to two days in advance as part of your meal prep. If you’d like to make the sauce before cooking your pasta, you can substitute vegetable stock or water for the pasta water used in the recipe. Be sure to keep it in the fridge in an airtight container.
Store: To store, let it come to room temperature before placing it in an airtight container. It will keep in the fridge for 2-3 days.
Reheat: Reheat it on the stovetop over low heat until warm. You can also reheat it in the microwave at 30-second intervals, stirring after each interval until warm. For both methods, you may need to add a little water to keep the sauce from drying out.
Food processor: If you do not have a food processor, you can use a blender.

Nutrition