Creamy Pasta with Sun-Dried Tomatoes & Garlic

Lately, one of my most effective time and money-saving moves is making a double batch of a yummy pasta for dinner on Sunday or Monday night so that there are enough leftovers to send to school with my younger son for lunch all week.

This week's dinner and lunches are courtesy of a recipe from Pinch of Yum that I first made a month or two ago to rave reviews. Sweet sun-dried tomatoes, a touch of cream, fresh herbs, and pasta - it's hard to go wrong.

I especially love that this recipe calls for you to saute the onions and garlic in the oil from the jar of sun-dried tomatoes. No waste, no oil to dispose of + extra flavor = a win-win.

I tweaked Lindsay's recipe a little bit to give it even more flavor by adding onion, doubling the garlic, and more fresh herbs. I recommend basil, parsley, oregano, and chives. The latter two herbs have just recently popped back up again in our garden (hurray!) 

I didn't have spinach last night so I had to omit it, although I think it would be tasty. Do NOT skimp on the Parmesan. 

It was a huge hit -- everyone went back for seconds at dinner, and the seventh grader is set for the week.

Creamy Pasta with Sun-Dried Tomatoes & Garlic adapted from Pinch of Yum
Serves 4

Ingredients

• 8 ounces pasta 
• 4 large cloves garlic, minced or pressed
• 1 large onion, chopped
• 1/2 cup sun-dried tomatoes packed in oil, roughly chopped 
• 1/3 cup dry white wine 
• 2/3 cup heavy cream 
• 1 cup spinach, chopped 
• Up to 1/2 cup reserved pasta water 
• Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste 
• A cup of basil, roughly chopped
• 1/2 cup chopped chives 
• 1 cup of parsley, roughly chopped
• 1/4 cup oregano, chopped
• Lots of grated parmesan for serving

Directions

1. Bring a large pot of water to a boil and salt it liberally (ever since I watched Samin Nosrat's Salt Fat Acid Heat, I've been salting pasta water a lot more heavily.) An aside - you should watch this series, it's great! Cook the pasta accordingly to the directions on the package, reserving some of the cooking water before you drain it to use later.

2. While your pasta is cooking, heat several tablespoons of the oil from the sun-dried tomatoes in a large saucepan over medium heat. Saute the onions and garlic in the oil for several minutes until the onions soften and the garlic has mellowed. Add the sun-dried tomatoes and saute for another minute or two.

3. Add the wine and let it cook out to add flavor - this will take 3-4 minutes. Then add the spinach and cream and half of the chopped herbs and bring it to a simmer. Season with salt and pepper to taste.

4. Add the cooked pasta and stir well, adding as much of the reserved pasta cooking water as you need to coat all the pasta with the sauce.

5. Top with the remaining herbs and lots of Parmesan cheese.

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