Creamy Chickpea Pasta With Spinach and Rosemary

Creamy Chickpea Pasta With Spinach and Rosemary
David Malosh for The New York Times. Food Stylist: Simon Andrews.
Total Time
30 minutes
Rating
5(9,538)
Comments
Read comments

Luxurious and hearty, cheap and easy, this vegetarian pasta uses mostly pantry staples, requiring just a few fresh ingredients, like baby spinach, rosemary and heavy cream. Canned chickpeas form the foundation of the dish: They’re cooked until crisp and caramelized. Half are then saved as a garnish, while the rest are simmered until they break down and thicken the sauce. You can swap out your greens or beans, and if you want to experiment with flavor, raid your spice cabinet: Ground coriander, toasted fennel seeds, coarsely crumbled pink peppercorns or a sprinkle of smoked paprika perk up the dish.

  • or to save this recipe.

  • Subscriber benefit: Give recipes to anyone

    As a subscriber, you have 10 gift recipes to give each month. Anyone can view them - even nonsubscribers. Learn more.

  • Share this recipe

  • Print this recipe

Advertisement


Ingredients

Yield:4 servings
  • Kosher salt
  • ¼cup olive oil
  • 1(14-ounce) can chickpeas, rinsed and drained
  • 2teaspoons finely chopped fresh rosemary, plus more for garnish
  • ½teaspoon Aleppo pepper, or ¼ to ½ teaspoon red-pepper flakes (optional)
  • Black pepper
  • 1large shallot, finely chopped
  • 2garlic cloves, finely chopped
  • 1cup heavy cream
  • 1(6-ounce) bag baby spinach
  • 12ounces spaghetti or bucatini
  • ½cup finely grated Parmesan
  • Lemon wedges, for serving
Ingredient Substitution Guide
Nutritional analysis per serving (4 servings)

878 calories; 44 grams fat; 19 grams saturated fat; 1 gram trans fat; 17 grams monounsaturated fat; 4 grams polyunsaturated fat; 95 grams carbohydrates; 11 grams dietary fiber; 10 grams sugars; 28 grams protein; 798 milligrams sodium

Note: The information shown is Edamam’s estimate based on available ingredients and preparation. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.

Powered by

Preparation

  1. Step 1

    Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil over high.

  2. Step 2

    In a wide, deep skillet, heat the oil over medium-high. Add the chickpeas, rosemary and Aleppo pepper, if using. Season generously with salt and pepper, and cook, stirring occasionally, until chickpeas start to caramelize at their edges and pop, 5 to 7 minutes. Using a slotted spoon, transfer about half the chickpeas to a bowl. Reserve for garnish.

  3. Step 3

    Reduce the heat to medium, add the shallots and garlic to the skillet, and season with salt and pepper. Cook, stirring occasionally, until shallots are softened, about 3 minutes. Add the heavy cream and cook until slightly thickened, about 3 minutes. Turn off the heat, stir in the spinach and season to taste with salt and pepper.

  4. Step 4

    Add the pasta to the boiling water and reduce the heat to medium. Cook the pasta until a couple minutes short of al dente according to package instructions, about 5 minutes. Do not drain the pasta, but using tongs, transfer the pasta directly from the pot to the spinach and cream sauce. Add 1 cup pasta cooking water and the Parmesan, and cook over medium-high, stirring vigorously with the tongs, until the sauce is thickened and the noodles are al dente, about 2 minutes. Add a splash of pasta water to loosen sauce, if needed.

  5. Step 5

    Transfer to bowls, and top with reserved chickpeas, rosemary and black pepper. Serve immediately, with lemon wedges for squeezing on top.

Private Notes

Leave a Private Comment on this recipe and see it here.

Ratings

5 out of 5
9,538 user ratings
Your rating

or to rate this recipe.

Have you cooked this?

or to mark this recipe as cooked.

Comments

Instead of adding heavy cream (Italians would never dream of using it) purée half the chick peas into a smooth sauce and voila you get vey creamy sauce. Light and delicious M

What is behind the rise of pasta recipes that call for 12 oz of pasta? Pasta comes in 1lb boxes. It’s frustrating to see this approach in an increasing number of nytimes recipes.

Forget about the high fat content from CREAM...use FAT FREE evaporated milk instead...I would defy anyone to know the difference!

I cooked the chickpeas from scratch and added aquafava to the sauce. Puréed most of the chickpeas and some zucchini. Added greens and butter. Took some sauce out of pan cooled it and added yogurt. It did not curdle. Added it to the rest of the sauce . Added pesto. Delicious.

This was so freaking delicious I will 10000% make this again and again and again...and thank you all for the pro tips of pulverizing half the chickpeas with a little cream and pasta water to taste separately then adding back to the pan, and adding more pasta water as needed for the sauce. AHHH FREAKING GOOD!

Not sure if it’s fair of me to give it a 4 since I didn’t have lemon, spinach or French rosemary. Enjoyed it. Appreciated the creaminess and husband is going back for seconds. Used peas in lieu of Spinach, which added a satisfying pop when chewed and sweetness also. Will make again.

Private comments are only visible to you.

or to save this recipe.