Pasta with Fresh Spinach & Seared Cherry Tomatoes

Check out a short video of me making the dish here

Spice Profile: basil, black garlic, fennel, garlic, nutritional yeast, onion, oregano, porcini mushrooms, red chile flakes, rosemary, tomato powder

This is so flavorful and so simple to make.

Ingredients:

• About 1 lb pasta (I used linguine, but any kind works—gluten-free included)

• ~5 oz fresh spinach

• 2 tsp Stock+Spice Spinach Pasta Seasoning

• ½ cup pasta water

• ½ cup grated Parmesan cheese

• Salt to taste

• Olive oil

• 1 pint cherry tomatoes, (cut larger ones in half)

Instructions:

1. Cook the pasta:
   Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Add your pasta of choice and cook according to the package instructions. Reserve ½ cup of the pasta water before draining.

2. Make the spinach sauce:
   Roughly chop the spinach and place it in a blending container. Add the reserved ½ cup of pasta water and the Spinach Pasta Seasoning.
   Blend until smooth using an immersion blender, food processor, or regular blender.

3. Add cheese and season:
   Stir ½ cup grated Parmesan into the blended spinach mixture. Add salt to taste and mix well. The starchy pasta water gives the sauce a silky texture, but if you prefer, you could substitute with a splash of cream or yogurt—though I really like it just with the pasta water.

4. Sear the tomatoes:
   While the pasta finishes cooking, heat a sauté pan over medium heat with a splash of olive oil. Add the cherry tomatoes (halve the larger ones) and cook, stirring often, until they are blistered but still mostly whole—about 3 minutes.

5. Assemble and serve:
   Drain and rinse the cooked pasta, then toss it with the spinach sauce until well coated. Serve topped with the pan-seared cherry tomatoes and a little extra Parmesan, if you like.

Enjoy this bright, spring-inspired dish!

Enjoy!