This frozen spinach pasta dish is a delicious 30-minute recipe using frozen spinach, spaghetti, Parmesan, and other pantry ingredients.
This recipe for frozen spinach pasta is so simple that I have difficulty finding something to say about it! Except that it is absolutely delicious.
A quick dish of spaghetti with spinach and garlic using mostly pantry ingredients, like pasta, frozen spinach, and Parmesan. Even the cream be bought as a pantry ingredient nowadays.
And another bonus when making pasta with frozen spinach: it takes less than 30 minutes to have dinner on the table.
Check out more super quick pasta recipes: Chicken Parmesan Garlic Pasta, Cream Cheese Pasta, Beetroot Pasta, or Chicken Fusilli Pasta.
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❄️Why should you use more frozen spinach?
- Convenient ingredient: Fresh spinach is great, but it is rarely available where I live, so I can't plan in advance when I want to cook a spinach dish.
- No cleaning necessary: I really don't like cleaning fresh spinach. It takes ages to remove all those stems, it always comes in huge packages that don't fit in the refrigerator, but once you've cooked it down a little, you are left with a handful of spinach.
- Shelf life: Fresh spinach doesn't keep well, while frozen lasts "forever" in the freezer. You can buy it in advance and always have it when needed.
- Easy to portion: You can easily remove the exact amount you need from the bag or box; it doesn't always have to be thawed before use; it is a great addition to many dishes.
- Versatile: I use it for making this frozen spinach pasta dish, for soups, for dips, for making creamed spinach, for pretty much anything except for salads. Make our Romanian Spinach Soup with Omelet or the No-Bake Spinach Artichoke Dip.
📋Recipe ingredients
- Frozen spinach.
- Pasta: Spaghetti or any other pasta shapes you like.
- Dairy: Freshly grated Parmesan, milk, and heavy cream.
- Other ingredients: Garlic, lemon juice, and some spices.
All pantry ingredients, including the cream.
- Fresh cream has quite a long life in the fridge anyway, but I always have some long-life milk and cream in the cellar anyway, especially nowadays...
- Garlic also keeps well for a longer period of time. You should store it at room temperature in a room with moderate humidity and preferably in a dark place.
- Parmesan is also a kind of cheese that, when properly kept, lasts for months.
- Fresh lemon juice is always best, but if you don't have it, feel free to use a small amount of lemon juice from a bottle.
See the recipe card for full information on the ingredients and quantities required for the frozen spinach pasta dish.
Additions
- Protein: Add cooked chicken or turkey (either freshly cooked or leftovers), drained tuna from a can, shrimp, or pan-fried tofu. Make some Thin-Sliced Chicken Breast, Air Fryer Frozen Shrimp, or Baked Bratwurst to serve with the frozen spinach pasta.
- Vegetables: Cherry tomatoes, roasted bell peppers, sautéed mushrooms, steamed broccoli, or cooked beans.
- Other kinds of cheese: Feta cheese or goat cheese can add creaminess and flavor to your dish.
- Nuts or seeds: Toasted pine nuts, almonds, or sunflower seeds can add crunch and texture to this frozen spinach pasta dish.
Make more of our favorite recipes using frozen spinach: Spinach Chicken Curry, Beef and Potato Curry, or Spinach Roll.
👩🏻🍳How to cook pasta with frozen spinach?
Step #1: Cook spaghetti. While the water and the pasta cook, prepare the spinach sauce.
Step #2: Place the frozen spinach and a small amount of water in a saucepan. Stir until it defrosts.
Step #3: Add milk and simmer for 5 minutes. Add cream, garlic, and spices. Cook for 2 minutes.
Step #4: Blend the sauce if desired, or leave it as it is. Add Parmesan, stir well, and adjust the taste. Mix with the drained pasta.
🔊Expert Tips
Spinach: If you remembered to thaw the frozen spinach in time; skip the first step (cooking spinach with a bit of water until thawed).
Acidic ingredients: Adding a splash of acidic ingredients like lemon juice or balsamic vinegar can help brighten up the flavors of your frozen spinach pasta dish and balance the earthiness of the spinach.
Blend the spinach sauce, if you like, to make it really smooth and creamy.
❓Recipe FAQs
You can cook the spinach sauce and refrigerate it in an airtight container for 1-2 days.
Cook the pasta and mix it with the sauce just before serving.
Yes, you can use fresh spinach instead of frozen spinach in this recipe. Clean it well, remove the very long, thick stalks (if necessary), and cook it down with the milk, cream, and spices. You might need to blend the sauce once it's cooked to make it smoother.
Yes, by using dairy-free cream, milk, and cheese alternatives in the sauce. I often use nutritional yeast to replace Parmesan and make a dish vegan.
🍽️What to serve with this dish?
📖Recipe
Pasta with Spinach
Ingredients
- 1 lb spaghetti 450 g, Note 1
- 1 lb frozen spinach 450 g
- ¼ cup water 60 ml
- ⅔ cup milk 150 ml
- ½ cup heavy cream 125 ml
- 3 garlic cloves
- some nutmeg
- fine sea salt and pepper
- 1-2 teaspoon fresh lemon juice
- ½ cup freshly grated Parmesan 50 g, Note 2
Instructions
- Cook the pasta: Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Cook the spaghetti according to the package's instructions.1 lb spaghetti/ 450 g
- Thaw spinach: In the meantime, place the frozen spinach in a small pot, add the water, cover, and let thaw, stirring often. If your spinach is already thawed, skip this step.1 lb frozen spinach/ 450 g + ¼ cup water/ 60 ml
- Cook spinach: When the spinach is thawed, and the extra water is almost entirely evaporated, add the milk to the pot, cover, and let the spinach cook for about 5 minutes.⅔ cup milk/ 150 ml
- Add the cream, grated garlic, nutmeg, salt, and pepper to taste and stir for another 2 minutes; the sauce should thicken slightly.½ cup heavy cream/ 125 ml + 3 garlic cloves + some nutmeg + fine sea salt and pepper
- Adjust the taste with fresh lemon juice and more salt and pepper if necessary.1-2 teaspoon fresh lemon juice + fine sea salt and pepper
- Add the freshly grated Parmesan, stir well, and mix the sauce with the drained spaghetti.½ cup freshly grated Parmesan/ 50 g
- Serve immediately with more grated Parmesan, green salad, or tomato salad.
Notes
- Pasta: You can use any pasta shapes you like.
- Parmesan: Use freshly grated Parmesan from a wedge of cheese. Pre-grated cheese contains additives that will prevent it from melting nicely, and that will make the sauce grainy.
Chris Scheuer says
This sounds wonderful. I can see why your daughter could hardly wait to eat!
mjskitchen says
I can see that I missed A LOT of great dishes while on vacation! Lots of spinach dishes which is perfect for this time of year. The pasta dish has really caught my interest as we love dishes like this. The picture with your daughter is classic. 🙂
grace says
tomato sauce gives me the worst heartburn now so i'm loving a pasta dish without it! very appetizing recipe, adina!
Angie@Angie's Recipes says
It must have been years since I last had some pasta...miss those days that I didn't have to worry about carbs. Yours with spinach looks healthy and very delicious, Adina.
Shashi at Savory Spin says
Adina, I didn't grow up with noodles in Sri Lanka either - but, once my daughter was born, I had to step up my noodle game as she loves that stuff! And I know she would love this - though she might not have been as patient as your daughter was! By the way, your gal is so adorable!
Dawn - Girl Heart Food says
I eat pasta regularly (sometimes a couple times a week). Love this combo with spinach and cream! Your daughter is so cute. Funny how she was wanting to eat and you were talking photos. Hubby always has to wait for me to finish taking photos too, lol. I'm like, nope, not yet 😉 It's almost cold before we sit down!
Anca says
Yummy. The pasta looks so inviting. The recipe sounds great, I like the addition of nutmeg.