Quick and Healthy Green Pasta

This quick and healthy green pasta is light, fresh, and packed with vitamins and minerals to help you feel your best.

This green pasta reminds me of pesto, but lighter. It’s dairy free, super easy to throw together and you just need a few things. Here’s everything you’ll need and how to make it.

What You’ll Need

Equipment

• Large pot
• Frying pan
• Blender

Ingredients

• Spinach: Any kind of spinach will work – baby spinach, regular spinach. Whatever’s easiest.
• Basil: Fresh basil is essential in this recipe. Packs so much flavor.
• Olive oil: I use extra virgin olive oil.
• Garlic: Either fresh or jarred garlic works.
• Red pepper flakes: Optional, if you like a little spice.
• Nutritional yeast: This gives the pasta a very subtle “cheesy” flavor. It also has a little nuttiness to it which I love. You can usually find nutritional yeast in the baking aisle.
• Lemon juice: I use the juice of 1/2 lemon.
• Salt and pepper: To season.
• Pasta: Any shape you prefer. I like the rotini.

How To Make It

1. Blanch the greens: Get some water boiling in a large pot – make sure it’s enough for the pasta to cook in afterwards. While you wait for the water to boil, fill a medium size bowl with ice water. Once the water is boiling, dump the spinach and basil in and let it cook for 30 seconds. Quickly remove the greens with a hand held strainer or slotted spoon and add directly into the ice water.
2. Cook the pasta: In the same pot of water (should still be boiling), add the pasta and cook according to box directions. When pasta is almost done, reserve 1/4 cup pasta water and set aside. Drain and rinse noodles.
3. Cook the garlic in oil: While the pasta is cooking, heat a small frying pan on medium heat. Add the olive oil, garlic, optional red pepper flakes and cook, being careful not to burn the garlic. I cook mine until the pasta is done.
4. Make the sauce: Remove the basil and spinach from the ice water, gently squeezing to remove some of the water. Add to a blender or food processor, along with the cooked garlic and oil, nutritional yeast, lemon juice, salt and pepper, and pasta water. If you like a thicker sauce, squeeze out more water from the greens and don’t add the pasta water.
5. Add it all together: Add the noodles and sauce back into the hot pot, stirring everything together.

And that’s it! You’ve got a light, fresh pasta that is going to make you feel amazing.

Pair With

This pasta isn’t super high in protein on it’s own, so I like to pair it with a lean protein source. My favorite is chicken breast, but choose whatever protein you love. I recently had lemon pepper chicken with this which was delicious – I will work on getting a recipe for you guys soon!

Do You Need To Blanch The Veggies?

My simplest answer? Yes.

You COULD skip it if you wanted, but this recipe would not turn out as good. Blanching the greens does a few important things:

1. Brightens color: After blanching, the color of the spinach and basil becomes brighter, resulting in a prettier sauce.
2. Wilts and softens: The spinach and basil become softer and easier to blend up with the rest of the sauce.
3. Reduces pesticides and microbes: Blanching reduces any preservatives or microbes on the surface of the greens which is always an added bonus.

Tips

• If you like it “cheesier”: Add more nutritional yeast. This calls for 2 tbsp, but I’ve done up to 4 before when I want something more cheesy.
• If you like it creamier: I’ve also made this with coconut milk for a bit of extra creaminess. While I don’t think it’s absolutely necessary, you could definitely sub some for the pasta water if you’ve got it.
• Measure with your heart (with the help of your taste buds): Adjust this sauce to your liking. Be sure to taste it and add more salt, pepper, or nutritional yeast based on your preferences.

To Store

Store leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 4 days. To reheat, microwave in 30 second increments until it’s as warm as you like.

Lastly, be sure to leave a comment and review if you try this one! As I mentioned before, this is my first dairy-free recipe, so I greatly appreciate any and all feedback.

Quick and Healthy Green Pasta

5 from 1 vote

This quick and healthy green pasta is light, fresh, and packed with vitamins and minerals to help you feel your best.

Print Recipe Pin Recipe

Prep Time:10 minutes mins

Cook Time:10 minutes mins

Course: Main Course

Cuisine: Italian

Servings: 4

Calories: 264kcal

Equipment

• Large pot
• Frying pan
• Blender

Ingredients

• 2 cups fresh spinach (60 g)
• 1/2 cup fresh basil (12 g)
• 8 oz pasta (224 g) any shape
• 1 1/2 tbsp olive oil (21 g)
• 1 tbsp minced garlic (15 g)
• 1/4 tsp red pepper flakes optional
• 2-4 tbsp nutritional yeast (10-20 g) see notes
• 1 1/2 tbsp lemon juice about 1/2 lemon juiced
• 1/4-1/2 tsp salt to taste
• 1/4 tsp black pepper

Instructions

• Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil on the stove. Add ice and water to a medium size bowl to make an ice bath.
• Add spinach and basil to boiling water and cook for 30 seconds. Remove with a handheld strainer or slotted spoon and quickly transfer to the ice water and set aside.
• In the same pot of boiling water, add the pasta and cook according to box directions. Drain and rinse pasta, but reserve 1/4 cup of the pasta water for the sauce.
• While pasta is cooking, add olive oil, garlic, and optional red pepper flakes to a small frying pan on medium heat. Cook, stirring occasionally so garlic doesn't burn.
• To a food processor or blender, add the blanched greens (gently squeezing out excess water), cooked garlic and oil, nutritional yeast, lemon juice, salt and pepper, pasta water, and blend until smooth.
• Add the cooked noodles and sauce back to the hot pot, stirring everything together, and serve immediately.

Notes

• Nutritional yeast: If you like a “cheesier” sauce, add closer to 4 tbsp.
• Salt: Start with 1/4 tsp, taste the sauce, then add more if needed.
• Sauce thickness: For a thicker sauce, squeeze more water out of the blanched greens, and add less pasta water.

Nutrition

Serving: 168g | Calories: 264kcal | Carbohydrates: 44.2g | Protein: 8.8g | Fat: 6.3g | Fiber: 3.9g

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