30/07/2024

Chickpea and Spinach Pasta

Name: Chickpea and Spinach Pasta
Prep time: 10 min
Cook time: 10 min
Total time: 20 min
Ingredients: salt; 75 - 100 g medium sized dried pasta ((e.g. cavatappi/spirali, fusilli)); 1 tbsp olive oil; 1 - 2 cloves garlic ((finely chopped)); 80 g cooked chickpeas; ¼ - ½ tsp hot or mild chilli or red pepper flakes; 100 g spinach ((defrosted and squeezed dry if frozen)); black pepper; ½ lemon ((juice only)); 1 rounded tbsp finely chopped parsley; finely grated cheese to serve ((e.g. Parmesan, Pecorino, hard goat cheese))

Chickpea and Spinach Pasta uses tinned chickpeas, frozen spinach and dried pasta to create an economical but tasty dish. Flavoured with garlic, lemon, parsley, hot chilli or mild red pepper flakes, the sauce ingredients can be prepped and cooked in the time it takes the pasta to boil.

Served with or without a scattering of cheese, Chickpea and Spinach Pasta makes a great lunch or main course, hot or cold.

Jump to Recipe

Although I don’t eat pasta that often as a main dish, I do like to have a few simple recipes up my sleeve for a quick lunch. As I’ve said before, my test for quickness is: can I prep and cook the sauce ingredients in the ten or so minutes it takes dried pasta to boil?

The latest of these was beautifully elegant Pasta with Fresh Tomatoes & Mint. While that recipe relied largely on the freshness of the two main ingredients, the one I’m sharing today is rather different. Because the stars of Chickpea & Spinach Pasta are convenient store cupboard and freezer staples.

CHICKPEA & SPINACH PASTA

Chickpeas are one of my favourite pulses as I love their earthy, nutty flavour. Unsurprisingly then, they crop up regularly in my recipes. A few examples include hearty Chickpea, Chorizo & Kale Soup, fragrant Chickpea, Potato & Coconut Curry, and moreish Roasted Aubergine with Herbed Tahini Yogurt & Crispy Chickpeas. Widely available and relatively cheap, I always keep several tins of chickpeas in my pantry.

While I do enjoy fresh spinach, it doesn’t keep very well. That means, unless I happen to get some in my veg box delivery, I only tend to buy it when I already have a recipe in mind. But frozen spinach is perfect for impromptu dishes. And with no picking through it or preparation other than defrosting for a few seconds in the microwave then squeezing dry, it’s exactly right for my super-quick lunchtime bowl of pasta. Note: if you want to use fresh spinach, just add at the same point in the recipe as the frozen and cook until done to your liking.

INGREDIENTS

Add to the tinned chickpeas and frozen spinach a few handfuls of dried pasta and you have the base of a satisfying meal for little effort. And at a reasonable cost too.

For my Chickpea & Spinach Pasta you’ll also need: extra virgin olive oil, garlic, hot chilli flakes or mild red pepper flakes, lemon juice, parsley, salt, and black pepper.

I like to serve it with grated cheese sprinkled over, but you could leave this out. While Parmesan or pecorino would be the obvious choices, I’ve discovered a lovely local hard goats cheese made by Guernsleigh which is an excellent substitute here.

For the pasta, almost any medium-sized dried shape should be fine. For this recipe, I like ‘springy’ ones like cavatappi (sometimes called spirali) or fusilli.

QUICK & EASY PASTA

You’ll find a detailed recipe card at the end with full instructions and suggestions for ingredient amounts to serve one person. But this is an extremely simple dish, and you’ll barely need to refer to it once you’ve made and tried its lovely flavour just once. Obviously, just multiply everything up if you’re feeding greater numbers.

The first thing to do is put on a saucepan of water for the pasta. I boil a kettle as it’s quicker, then pour the water into the pan. Throw in plenty of salt followed by your dried pasta. Give it a stir then leave to vigorously bubble while you get on with the rest.

Start by putting a small, deepish frying pan over low-medium heat and put in the olive oil and finely chopped garlic. Cook gently just for a few minutes to colour the garlic then add the chickpeas and chilli or red pepper flakes. After another minute, stir in the defrosted and squeezed dry spinach, along with some salt and pepper.

Once everything’s hot, you can drain the pasta (keep back a cupful of the cooking water) and add it to the chickpeas and spinach. Add the juice of half a lemon plus enough of the pasta cooking water to loosen the mixture.

When it’s all nicely combined, taste and add a bit more seasoning if you think it needs it, or more chilli or lemon. Finally, stir in the finely chopped parsley.

SERVING CHICKPEA & SPINACH PASTA

Once it’s in my bowl, I like to top Chickpea & Spinach Pasta with a drizzle of extra virgin olive oil, plus more black pepper and chilli/red pepper flakes. Another half a lemon on the side, to squeeze as you go, isn’t a bad idea either. All that’s left to do then is scatter over some salty, tangy cheese and dig in.

Given the relatively simple ingredients and flavours, I think this quick and easy pasta made with largely everyday, accessible ingredients is a real winner. Try it, don’t be mean with the seasonings, and I think you’ll enjoy it too.

If you don’t add cheese until serving, Chickpea & Spinach Pasta is also good eaten cold as a salad. So it’s great for packed lunches and picnics as well.

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