Recipe Breakdown - Deliciously Ella’s ‘Creamy Pea & Spinach Pasta: A 10 Minute Meal’
Prep time: 15 minutes (including bringing water to boil)
Clean up time: 5 minutes
Serves: 1
This wonderful recipe from Deliciously Ella is my go-to meal for one. It contains only a few simple ingredients, actually takes 10 minutes or less to make (if you don’t count boiling the water), creates minimal dishes, and is tasty and nourishing. This combination is exactly what I look for in a winning recipe! It also makes a great base if you are feeling creative or have extra veggies, beans etc. on hand. Peas and spinach are also great sources of all round nourishment. They contain protein, B vitamins, fibre, folate, vitamin C, zinc, magnesium, iron, as well as much more. I hope you enjoy this tasty, amazing, little meal as much as I do.
Creamy Pea & Spinach Pasta: A 10 Minute Meal
OVERVIEW
Serves: 1
Cooking: 10M
Total: 10M
Difficulty: easy
INGREDIENTS:
1 serving of pasta (I use brown rice pasta)
2 tablespoon of yogurt (I use Coyo)
A handful of spinach
Juice of half a lemon
A handful of garden peas (fresh or frozen)
Teaspoon of olive oil
Salt and pepper to taste
METHOD:
Start by cooking your pasta; bring a pan of water to boil and simmer your pasta for 7-9 minutes. If you’re using frozen peas, then cook them in with your pasta for the second half of the cooking time.
Once your pasta is cooked; drain and add your yogurt, oil, lemon juice, peas, spinach, salt and pepper – give the whole thing a good stir and enjoy!
Ingredient Tips:
-I usually make this recipe without the oil as I don’t think it needs it. I’m sure it would add to the creaminess of the texture if used.
- Don’t have frozen peas in the freezer? Then no problem work with what you have. We’ve made it with frozen corn and frozen stir fry mix and it was still delicious.
- I LOVE coconut yoghurt so always serve with an extra dollop on top. (The price of coconut yoghurt is slowly coming down in NZ and the brand I use the most because is Zenzo. Can’t say I’ve actually tasted a bad coconut yoghurt, they can just be a bit expensive.)
-I serve the toddler a version of this with just the pasta and peas. I’m not quite sure how, but he doesn’t like coconut yoghurt (I really have to work on that one). We usually use either a wholewheat pasta or organic ramen/soba noodles.
Preparation and Clean Up Tips:
-The great thing about this pasta dish is that there isn’t much to making it so the preparation is minimal. Clean up is also a breeze - there should only be a chopping board, knife, and pot!
-It is a meal for one so if serving more people you’ll need to up each of the ingredients except for the salt and oil. I’ve never kept any of this for the next day (there is never any left, it’s so tasty!), but I don’t think the coconut yoghurt would keep or heat up well. But because this recipe is SO simple it would take almost the same amount of time to make it, as re-heating something from the previous night.
I hope you enjoy this quick pasta dish. I love having it as a backup for those particularly crazy evenings. If you like this recipe then another dish by Deliciously Ella that is along the same lines is her Pea and Spinach Pesto Pasta. It has a few more ingredients and takes a little longer to make, but is still a simple and quick recipe. All the recipes I’ve tried from her app, website and cookbooks, have been easy and delicious (just as the name suggests!). To learn more about her check out my recommended page.
Disclaimer: I am not a nutritionist or health professional. I have completed a certificate in Plant-Based Nutrition from eCornell and have done in-depth research about plant-based living. The information I trust is mostly sourced from medical professionals that are leading the way in this plant-based revolution. Check out my recommended page for more info.
