20-Min Green Pasta (with Peas and Spinach)
Click the stars to rate!
Looking for a quick recipe, ready in under 20 minutes, that’s both healthy and delicious? You’ll love this green pasta with a pea and spinach sauce! It’s my favorite recipe for lazy evenings, especially after sport when I’m in the mood for something healthy, filling and delicious. It’s quick, easy and, best of all, there’s hardly any washing up to do.
In This Article
For this recipe, I was inspired by the famous Green Goddess Pasta seen everywhere on Instagram and TikTok. In my version, I use frozen peas (to save time), baby spinach and fresh basil. For the rest, just a little ricotta (or skyr for a light version), parmesan and a little garlic.
Above all, don’t forget to drizzle a little lemon juice over the pasta at the end, to contrast with the sweetness of the peas. I also serve them with a little burrata, lemon zest and a few chilli flakes, and frankly, it immediately gives the dish a super-refined touch!
Why You Will Love This Recipe
- Ready in 20 min: By the time your pasta has cooked, the sauce is ready.
- Healthy & Green: Fill up on iron and vitamins with spinach and peas.
- Few dishes: a saucepan, a blender and that’s it!
- Wow effect: The contrast between the bright green and the white burrata is magnificent.
And if you like peas and green dishes like that, you can try my Pan-fried Salmon Steak with Pea Purée or my Pea, Mint and Feta Salad!
👉 Recipe card
Rigatoni with Pea Pesto
Click on the stars to rate!
Equipment
Ingredients
- 1 lb of pasta
- 2 cup peas frozen or fresh
- 4 handfuls baby spinach
- ¾ cup basil loosely packed
- 1/4 cup Parmesan cheese grated
- 1/4 cup ricotta cheese
- 1 garlic clove
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- Salt and pepper
For decoration
- 2 balls of burrata
- 1 lemon organic, for the zest and juice
- A few basil leaves
- 1 pinch chilli flakes
Instructions
- Plunge the peas into a pan of boiling salted water for 60 seconds. Drain and plunge immediately into a bowl of iced water to set their green color.
- Keep 100g of whole peas aside for the final mixture.
- In the same boiling water, cook the pasta until al dente. Before draining, remove one cup of pasta cooking water.
- While the pasta is cooking, place the remaining peas, spinach, basil, Parmesan, garlic, olive oil and ricotta in a blender. Season with salt and pepper.
- Add 60ml to 80ml of hot pasta cooking water, collected at the end of cooking. Blend on full power until smooth and thick. If the sauce is too thick, add a dash of reserved cooking water.
- Return the drained pasta to the hot pan, pour the green sauce and reserved peas over the pasta and mix well.
- Serve in soup plates and add a little burrata, lemon zest, lemon juice, basil leaves, chilli pepper and pepper.
Nutrition
How To Make the Perfect Green Sauce
You’ll see, this green pasta sauce is super convenient to prepare. The only risk is either overcooking the peas, or the sauce being too cold. I’ve got a few tips for that:
- Blanch the peas: Ideally, you should blanch the peas (you can do this in the same saucepan in which you’ll cook your pasta afterwards). Then blanch them immediately in iced water to preserve their color. Alternatively, you can reheat frozen peas in the microwave, as explained in my article on How to prepare peas (fresh or frozen).
- Put everything in the blender: While you’re cooking the pasta, put all the sauce ingredients in your blender, then wait.
- Pasta water: A minute or two before your pasta is cooked, collect a tiny bit of cooking pasta water, pour it into the blender and blend immediately. This will reheat the sauce without “overcooking” the peas.
- Mix and serve: Pour the green sauce over the drained pasta, add a little more cooking water if it seems too dry, then serve.
- The finishing touch: Really, this is an integral part of the recipe: serve with a drizzle of lemon juice, lemon zest and, above all, the burrata. If, like me, you like things a little spicy, add a little chilli. It goes really well with peas.
My advice: make sure the pasta water is well salted! In Italy, we say that the water should taste like seawater. Above all, always reserve a little more pasta water than you add to the sauce: that’s how you adjust the final texture. Since the water is salty, it really adds flavor to the dish.
More Recipes Under 30 Minutes!
- Baked chicken with potatoes and green beans
- Baked ham endives
- Baked chicken with green olives
- Zucchini, goat cheese, basil and lemon clafoutis
- Papillote of fish with orange jam
- Pan-fried white beans with tomatoes
- Baked salmon and green asparagus
FAQ – Green Pasta
I recommend pasta that will hold the sauce well. Rigatoni or fusilli are perfect for this, I think. Of course, if you’ve only got spaghetti in your cupboard, that’s fine too!
I like ricotta because it adds a lot of creaminess. For a lighter version, you can use skyr or cottage cheese, which is very rich in protein. For a vegan version, opt for a cashew-based fromage frais.
The secret is not to overcook the peas, but to plunge them immediately intoiced water after blanching. This fixes the chlorophyll (which gives them their green color).
If you’re not a big fan of peas, you can replace them with edamame or canned white beans. The sauce will be a little less green but just as creamy. For spinach, you can use other greens such as kale (eaten raw or blanched) or Swiss chard leaves (best blanched with the peas). You can also simply remove them: the sauce will then be a little sweeter!
My friend and I made this and added asparagus, only because we had it on hand. This recipe is amazing, it tasted like spring! It was fun and easy to make, and didn’t require too many dishes to clean up after. We’ll definitely make it again. Thank you!!
Thank you so much, Bojana, so happy you liked it and you confirm how easy it is 🤗