Green Pasta (Spinach & Pea Pasta)

Name: Green Pasta (Spinach & Pea Pasta)
Prep time: 5 min
Cook time: 12 min
Total time: 17 min
Ingredients: 200 g spaghetti (or other dried pasta); 1 brown onion (finely chopped); 100 g garden peas (defrosted if frozen); 2 garlic cloves (1 roughly chopped, another thinly sliced); 2 tbsp creme fraiche (or sour cream); a drizzle olive oil; 200 g spinach; grated cheese (optional)

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6 ingredients (plus oil and optional cheese) and 20 minutes of your time to arrive at a beautifully vibrant green pasta dish! Both nutritious and delicious, this creamy Spinach and Pea Pasta is a healthier dinner option when you are in a rush, and the fridge is looking a bit empty! Whilst we enjoy this recipe best with long noodles like spaghetti or linguine, it will work with any pasta shape!

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Why You’ll Love This Green Spaghetti

There are plenty of reasons to like this vegetarian green spaghetti.

Pasta and peas work extremely well and you can use frozen peas to create a beautifully smooth and creamy green pasta sauce!
You will only need 6 ingredients (plus oil) for this recipe (and you are likely to have garlic and dried pasta in your cupboards already!).
It’s a very quick recipe – it will come together in under 20 minutes!
Green Spaghetti is a budget-friendly dish. A portion of it will cost you about £1 ($1.30).
A great dish to serve in spring to showcase the vibrant green colour of nature coming alive, but it is equally suitable for Halloween dinner!

A bowlful of green pea pasta in a white & blue bowl on a white rustic table.

Ingredients and Substitutes

spaghetti: or other dried pasta. If you are using fresh pasta, have a look at the Recipe FAQ section below for tips.
onion: brown onion or shallots work best.
peas: we used frozen defrosted garden peas to make this meal as inexpensive as possible. But you may choose to use petit pois or fresh peas.
garlic.
creme fraiche: can be successfully replaced with sour cream.
a drizzle olive oil: or any other oil suitable for cooking, like sunflower, rapeseed or avocado oil.
spinach: we used baby spinach in this recipe, but any will do.
cheese: completely optional, but everybody loves some grated parmesan cheese on top, right? You can also use mature cheddar, Pecorino or Grana Padano instead.

What Pasta Shape Is Best For Pasta and Peas Recipe?

It may seem strange that peas and creme fraiche create a super rich and creamy sauce, but it’s true. The sauce coats the pasta beautifully and you don’t need much of it for a super decadent pasta dish. As a result, we like using long noodles for this green pea pasta. Other shapes, like conchiglie, farfalle or fusilli have lots of nooks and crannies to hold the sauce, and the dish becomes too rich for us!

For best results consider using:

Spaghetti
Linguine
Tagliatelle

Delicious Extras

If you wish to add a little extra to your green spaghetti, you absolutely can! As a matter of fact, this simple pasta dish is extremely easy to add to. Some delicious extras include:

Cooked shredded or sliced chicken.
Poached or baked salmon flakes.
Pan-fried asparagus for a true Pasta Verde experience (Pasta Verde typically includes spinach, peas and asparagus, like our Lasagna Verde (recipe coming soon)).
Crispy bacon or ham hog scattered on top works very well with peas too.
Sprinkle some chilli flakes (our vote goes to Aleppo pepper) on top.

Step-by-Step Method

Step 1: Cook Pasta

Cook the pasta following the instructions on the packet. You will typically boil your pasta in salted water in a large pan, until cooked al dente. If your pasta is cooked before your pea sauce is ready, stir in a tablespoon of olive oil into the drained pasta to ensure the noodles don’t stick to each other.

Step 2: Make Green Pasta Sauce

Whilst your pasta cooks, make the green pasta sauce. Drizzle some oil in a frying pan. Add the finely chopped onions and saute for 4-5 minutes until softened. Add the (defrosted) peas and cook for another minute.

Add the creme fraiche (or sour cream), 1 clove of garlic, sauteed onion and peas, and a pinch of salt into the cup of a powerful smoothie and blitz into a smooth puree. You can use a small food processor, but we find most of them are too big for sauce for 2 portions, so we highly recommend a smoothie maker if you’re not making a large batch.

Step 3: Cook The Spinach

Once your sauce is ready, you should still have a few minutes left until your pasta is cooked. Use this time to cook some spinach. Heat a frying pan with a drizzle of oil on low heat. Add the spinach, thinly sliced clove of garlic, and a pinch of salt and cover the pan with a lid. Leave the spinach to wilt for 2-3 minutes. Turn the heat off and leave the spinach in the pan until you’re ready to serve.

spinach wilting in the pan with salt and garlic.

Step 4: Assemble

When your pasta is cooked, drain it and add it back to the pan. Immediately, stir in the pea sauce. You may choose to stir in the wilted spinach too. Alternatively, spoon the spinach into the bowl/ plate. Then place the pasta on top. Scatter grated cheese and maybe even some chilli flakes! Enjoy!

Topping spinach and green spaghetti with grated cheese.

Recipe FAQs

Can I Use Heavy Cream Instead Of Creme Fraiche?

Yes, we tested the recipe with creme fraiche, sour cream and heavy cream in the green pasta sauce and all three work. Heavy cream will give the sauce an even richer flavour, so you may need less of the sauce. We suggest you squeeze a little bit of lemon juice into the pea puree too if you choose to use heavy cream.

Can I Use Fresh Pasta Instead?

Absolutely! You can use shop-bought fresh pasta or even make your own pasta. The trick with fresh pasta is not to overcook it, as it softened in just a couple of minutes. Cook it following packet instructions (spaghetti or linguine typically take less than 2 minutes to cook) and stir in the sauce immediately after draining to prevent the pasta from sticking together.

What To Serve With Green Pea Pasta?

What is the best sidekick to any pasta dish? Yes, you guessed it! It’s garlic bread! Serve your green pea pasta with some crispy crunchy cheesy garlicky bread and use it to mop up any remaining sauce at the bottom of your bowl! Or better yet, make Korean-style Cream Cheese Garlic Bread!

But if you want to add even more veggies to your diet, why not serve pasta and peas with:

Other Quick Vegetarian Pasta Recipes

We get it! Pasta is one of the best options for a quick and filling weeknight dinner. And it can be super exciting and delicious too! Some of our favourite easy veggie pasta dishes include:

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