Pastas are by far one of my family’s favorite dinners and if you want to guarantee that your kids eat their entire plate, this quick, easy and super tasty 10 minute spaghetti dish is one for the books!
One Saturday afternoon where I felt I had nothing fresh to cook, desperately needed to get groceries, had no time to shop and just really wanted to get a filling, nutritious meal on the table quick, this recipe was created. All I had was a bag of mushrooms and half a bag of spinach to whip something good up or it was going to boring sandwiches.
But a pasta dish that I love from our local Italian speciality store popped in my head; a delicious, spicy, light pasta tossed with sautéed mushrooms, roasted peppers and a bit of chili and olive oil. Using this dish as inspiration and quickly checking that I had the few pantry items to finish it off, we created a tasty, satisfying, super quick and easy spaghetti that my toddler gobbled up and I couldn’t wait to finish his leftovers. Did I mention it was vegetarian too?
Spinach and mushrooms add a great earthiness to the dish while providing key vitamins such as vitamin C, folate and iron from the spinach while the mushrooms provide a good source of protein. This pasta is so satisfying because of how nutrient dense it can be by swapping out your plain white pasta for a whole wheat pasta and by adding in a variety of colorful vegetables like peppers and eggplant. Just the colors alone make it appetizing, feel free to throw in whatever you have on hand!
What is really great about this dish is how versatile it can be, it can be your go to pantry pasta, where you throw in whatever you have on hand that day. For me it was spinach, mushrooms and a couple preserved items but you can add in chicken or shrimp too!
- 1 box spaghetti or other pasta
- 3 tbsp extra-virgin olive oil
- 1 tsp minced garlic
- ½ tsp chili flakes
- 2 cups chopped cremini mushrooms
- ½ cup chopped roasted red peppers
- ½ cup chopped spicy pickled eggplant
- Salt
- ¼ cup Parmigiano cheese, grated
- Bring a large pot of water to boil.
- Add a few tbsp salt to boiling water and add spaghetti to pot.
- While pasta is cooking, heat the oil in sauté pan and add garlic and chili and mushrooms and cook for 2-3 minutes. Add peppers and eggplant and cook for another few minutes. Test doneness of pasta, should be cooked al dente, cooked thoroughly but still have a bit of chew. Add cooked spaghetti to sauté pan and combine pasta with vegetables. Add spinach and Parmesan cheese. Add ⅓ cup of reserved starchy pasta water to sauté pan and stir until spinach is wilted and a nice sauce has been formed. Serve and enjoy!