This creamy one pot pasta is rich, comforting and ridiculously easy to make. Perfect for busy weeknights when you want a dinner that’s genuinely worth making.
Some pasta recipes are worth making once. This one’s worth making on repeat. Rich, silky, and all cooked in one pot, this pasta delivers maximum flavour with minimal fuss – exactly what a weeknight dinner should be. Follow me…
Ingredients Notes
You only need simple, store-bought ingredients for this dish, but it genuinely tastes restaurant-quality. I also have a sneaky suspicion you might already have some of the ingredients knocking around in your kitchen. The full quantities are in the recipe card, but just to quickly go over what we need:
- Pasta – I like penne because the sauce gets stuck inside, but you can use any short-cut pasta you fancy.
- Spinach – this is going straight into the pasta at the end to wilt down. The only prep I do is trim any aggressively large stalks, but that’s it.
- Tomato – the bulk of the tomato flavour is going to come from tomato paste (puree). I also love adding in some sun dried tomatoes for some added texture and for pops of tangy tomato flavour.
- Sauce – the sauce is made from chicken stock and cream.
- Extra flavour – onion and garlic make the base flavour, whilst a good helping of fresh basil lifts the entire dish and pairs so beautifully with tomato. I also love some parmesan stirred through at the end to add even more flavour. Chilli flakes are optional, but they add a lovely bit of heat.
Adding Protein
If you want to add some protein, chicken goes perfectly, either stirred through or served on top/on the side. Sausage is great too, either ground or sliced.
One Pot Tomato Spinach Pasta
If you’ve been around here before, you’ll know I’m a huge ambassador of One Pot Pasta Recipes. Here’s why it works:
- Creamy – the pasta releases starch into the sauce, that not only helps thicken it, but it also helps it turn extra creamy and glossy (hence the creamy tomato spinach pasta).
- Flavour – as the pasta cooks, it’ll absorb some of the gorgeous flavour of the sauce.
- Convenience – because who enjoys extra washing up?!
Process shots: fry onion (photo 1), fry garlic & sun dried tomatoes then stir in tomato paste (photo 2), add stock (photo 3), stir in cream and seasoning (photo 4), cook pasta (photo 5), stir in spinach & basil then parmesan (photo 6).
Tips for best results
- Tomato Paste – I recommend frying the tomato paste for a couple of minutes. This will essentially caramelise it. Tomato paste can be a little acidic, so doing this will help sweeten it.
- Cream – You’ll want to keep the cream at room temp. Adding fridge-cold cream to hot liquid can sometimes cause it to curdle.
- Consistency – You can easily adjust the consistency by adding more stock or water to cook the pasta through if needed.
- Seasoning – Be sure to generously season with salt and pepper to bring out the best in the simple sauce.
Serving Suggestions
I recommend plating up right away, because the sauce will continue to thicken. I always go in with extra parmesan and any leftover basil I’ve got lurking around, but both are optional. If you’re feeling extra hungry, consider some homemade garlic bread (Or cheesy garlic bread, or even cheesy PESTO garlic bread!)
For more delicious tomato pasta recipes check out my Tomato Mushroom Pasta and Tomato Bacon Pasta!
Alrighty, let’s tuck into the full recipe for this tomato spinach pasta shall we?!
How to make Tomato Spinach Pasta (Full Recipe & Video)
Creamy Tomato Spinach Pasta
Equipment
- Sharp Knife & Chopping Board
- Large Pot & Wooden Spoon
- Jug (for stock)
- Fine Cheese Grater
Ingredients
- 1 tbsp Sun Dried Tomato Oil, from a jar of sun dried tomatoes (sub olive oil)
- 1 medium White Onion, finely diced
- 3 cloves of Garlic, minced/finely diced
- 1 cup / 125g Sun Dried Tomatoes, finely diced
- 1/3 cup / 3oz / 85g Tomato Paste (Tomato Puree in UK)
- 4 cups / 1 litre Chicken Stock
- 1 cup / 240ml Double/Heavy Cream, at room temp
- 14oz / 400g uncooked Penne, or other short-cut pasta
- 1/4 – 1/2 tsp Chilli Flakes, or to preference
- 1 small bunch of Fresh Basil, finely diced (typically ~1oz/30g)
- 4oz / 120g Baby Spinach
- 1/2 cup / 40g freshly grated Parmesan, plus more to serve if desired
- Salt & Black Pepper, as needed
Instructions
- Place a large, deep pot over medium heat and add the oil. One hot, add the onion and fry until soft and golden. Add the sun dried tomatoes and garlic and fry for a further minute or so.
- Add the tomato paste and fry for a couple of minutes, then add the stock and use your wooden spoon to scrape the base of the pan to deglaze if needed. Stir in the cream until blended, then add the chilli flakes, alongside a generous pinch of salt and pepper (can adjust this later).
- Stir in the uncooked pasta and bring to a gentle simmer. Cook until the pasta is mostly cooked through and the sauce has mostly thickened, stirring fairly frequently to ensure the pasta doesn't stick. Stir in the spinach and basil until the spinach begins to wilt, then stir in the parmesan until it blends through the sauce. At this point the pasta should be perfectly al dente and the sauce thickened and no longer watery. If at any point the sauce over thickens before the pasta cooks, just add in more stock (or even hot water) as needed.
- Check for seasoning and adjust if needed (make sure it's properly seasoned) then serve up with extra parmesan if desired. Enjoy!
Video
Notes
Your Private Notes:
Nutrition
Looking for more?
You’ll find plenty more delicious comfort food like this in my Debut Cookbook ‘Comfy’
Tomato Spinach Pasta FAQ
Yes! Just thaw it first and squeeze out as much excess water as possible before adding it to the pasta. Frozen spinach holds onto a lot more moisture than fresh, so draining it well will help keep the sauce rich and creamy.
I wouldn’t recommend it. Cream gives the sauce its rich texture and is much less likely to split during cooking. If you do use milk, make sure it’s full-fat and be aware the sauce will be thinner and less luxurious.
This pasta is definitely at its best served fresh, but leftovers keep well in the fridge for up to 3 days. Reheat gently over a low heat with a splash of stock, milk or cream to loosen up the sauce.
After more creamy tomato pasta recipes? Check out my Creamy Tomato Sausage Pasta and Penne Alfredo with Bacon and Sun Dried Tomatoes!
For more similar recipes check out these beauties:
One Pot Pasta Recipes
- One Pot Spicy Rigatoni
- One Pot Chili Mac
- One Pot Mac and Cheese
- One Pot Chicken Fajita Pasta
- One Pot Creamy Beef Pasta
- One Pot Sausage Mushroom Pasta
- ALL One Pot Pasta Recipes!
Looks delicious!
Thanks so much Lynne! C.
Can you use something instead of sundried tomatoes not a favourite of the family
I would just leave them out if you really don’t like them. C.
I made this a few days ago and it’s super easy to make. I didn’t have sun dried tomatoes, so I just added more tomato paste, but I greatly enjoyed my meal.
Great to hear, Jena! Thanks so much for the review 🙂 C.
Another delicious simple dish to make. How much easier to cook the pasta in the sauce rather than boil separately. Because it is a rich dish you don’t need as big a portion so I’m technically classing it as ‘healthy’ lol.
Hahah I love that mentality!! Thanks for the review, Claire 🙂 C.
This is sooooooo nice and really easy to make!
Great to hear, Nichola! Thanks for the review 🙂 C.
Dinner tonight!!
Enjoy! 🙂
AMAZING RECIPE. Family loved it. Thanks.
Thanks for the review, Josh! 🙂
Hi Chris! Found you through Pinterest. Love your site. Bacon!!
And LOVE this tasty looking tomato spinach pasta dish! I haven’t tried doing this (extra creamy) one pot style. I think I might try a spinach variation and will probably add extra spice. Thanks!!