Name: Spinach Parmesan Garlic Butter Spaghetti Recipe
Prep time: 2 min
Cook time: 15 min
Total time: 17 min
Yield: 6 people
Cuisine: Italian/American
Ingredients: 3 tbsp butter (divded); 1 tsp olive oil; 1 cup cherry tomatoes; ¼ cup garlic (diced); 1 tsp pepper (fresh cracked); 1 tsp salt; 1 ½ cups stock or water; 2 cups baby spinach (fresh); ½ cups parmesan; 1 lb spaghetti (fresh – not dried)

This Spinach Parmesan Garlic Spaghetti dinner is a quick, easy, and decadent one pot spaghetti dinner – influenced by some of my favorite Tuscan flavors (we’re using butter in this dish which is not typical for a Tuscan Spaghetti Recipe – Tuscan food usually uses olive oil in place of butter, but I just love rich garlic butter spaghetti so much, so we’re going to say this spaghetti is more influenced and inspired by some of my favorite Tuscan flavors.)

A plate of garlic butter spaghetti with tomatoes and spinach.

A plate of garlic butter spaghetti with spinach and tomatoes.

A spinach spaghetti recipe with tomatoes and garlic butter sauce.

At Ajpal, I add lots of tips in all of my recipes – because I am a home cook without any formal training, and I find I am more confident making dishes when I understand why it works, and what each ingredient means to the flavor of a recipe. My goal is for even the most beginner home cook to feel empowered in the kitchen.

How to Make Garlic Parmesan Butter Spaghetti

This garlic butter pasta meal is a fabulous multitasker – it goes from the fridge to the table in less than 20 minutes, and is perfect for a crowd. It is fabulous topped with grilled or pan-seared chicken, fish, shrimp, steak, pork, or vegetables – and is filling and rich, without being greasy – so it’s also great for lunch or a dinner party!

Spinach Parmesan Spaghetti Ingredients

First assemble the following ingredients:

Butter (3 tbsp, divided) – Use 3 tbsp of butter, split between sautéing and finishing for richness.
Olive oil (1 tsp) – Add olive oil to sauté the ingredients and add flavor.
Cherry tomatoes (1 cup) – Cook cherry tomatoes until they soften and release juices into the sauce.
Garlic (¼ cup) – Sauté garlic until fragrant for a strong savory base.
Pepper (1 tsp) – Season with pepper for a balanced, slightly sharp flavor.
Salt (1 tsp) – Add salt to enhance all the ingredients.
Stock or water (1 ½ cups) – Use stock or water to loosen the sauce and help it coat the pasta.
Baby spinach (2 cups, fresh) – Stir in spinach and cook until wilted.
Parmesan (½ cups) – Add Parmesan to create a creamy, savory sauce.
Spaghetti (1lb, fresh – not dried) – Cook and toss fresh spaghetti with the sauce until well combined.

Steps to Make Parmesan Spinach Spaghetti

Once you have assembled the ingredients, use this method.

Heat Butter. In a large pan, add 1/2 butter and olive oil and heat on medium high until shimmery and lightly foamy.

Sauté. Add garlic and tomatoes and cook on medium until fragrant and soft – about 4 minutes, stirring occasionally to prevent from burning. Be careful as tomatoes may pop (which shoots hot tomato juice out – keep your arms out of the way.) Add spinach and stir, cook to wilted (about another 1-2 minutes).

Finish. Add water and spaghetti to pan and turn heat all the way up. When most of the water or stock has cooked off and the spaghetti is cooked to almost al dente, add remaining butter and parmesan to pan, tossing noodles and tomatoes in the butter. Top with additional fresh grated parmesan and serve immediately.

Tips and Tricks for Spinach Cheesy Garlic Spaghetti

Use Fresh Pasta – not dried. While you certainly can use dried pasta for this recipe, I much prefer fresh pasta (the kind you get in your grocer’s refrigerated deli case, NOT the boxed dry kind) – since it cooks much faster and requires less water.

Let the sauce emulsify. One of the reasons I love one pot pastas so much is the emulsified sauce – because it lets the sauce emulsify and become rich and creamy thanks to the starch releasing from cooking the pasta. This also helps sauce stick to the noodles better – so really let the cooking water to soften and cook the noodles reduce and cook down into the meal – you’ll love how creamy, indulgent, and rich it tastes! Don’t add too much water to the pot to cook the noodles – you’ll be tempted to throw out some of that starchy water and a lot of the flavor in the pan that we’re building.

Use Chicken stock for extra flavor

To kick this recipe up a notch, try adding chicken stock + water or just chicken stock to cook your noodles in!

Cook pasta to al dente. One pot pasta dinners are incredibly delicious and oh so easy – but they can quickly turn to mushy nightmares if the pasta is over cooked. Cook your pasta to have a bit of a bite still in the noodles.

Be careful around exploding tomatoes! This dish gets a wonderfully rich, tart kick from cherry tomatoes – which taste fabulous after they “pop” and release liquid. The only problem is the popping can be a bit dangerous and quite painful when the hot tomato juice explodes! Stand back and stir with a long handled spoon over heat to keep hands and arms away from the tomatoes as they cook – and don’t put your face over the pan. Safety first!

More Pasta Dinners You Will Love

If you love this easy one pot tuscan spaghetti recipe, please check out some of my other favorite pasta dinners – click each link to get to the easy printable recipe!

Try mt favorite including One Pot Creamy Tuscan Mushroom Linguine Recipe, 20 Minute Garlic Butter Chicken and Mushroom Pasta, Creamy Spinach Parmesan Gnocchi Recipe, and One Pot Bruschetta Chicken Pasta.