Spinach Pasta with Roasted Broccoli & Bell Pepper
This healthy vegetarian spinach pasta features roasted vegetables tossed with light balsamic sauce! Recipe is easily vegan and gluten free.
Updated by Kathryne Taylor on September 12, 2024
Would you look at that? I made Christmas-colored pasta, completely on accident. I’m on a perpetual roasted broccoli and red bell pepper kick, you see, and got a hankering for some hearty pasta.
Here, freshly roasted broccoli and bell pepper collide with lots of delicious sautéed spinach, my favorite whole wheat linguine and some balsamic vinegar. Toss all that together with some magical reserved pasta water for a light, silky sauce, and we end up with high-contrast Christmas pasta. I love it.
This spinach pasta recipe is highly adaptable. Feel free to change up the roasted vegetables—just use whatever you have around, cut to similar sizes and roasted until tender. Or, skip the roasted vegetables for a very simple but very flavorful and hearty spinach pasta.
The recipe is easily made vegan and/or gluten free, and the leftovers are great, whether served chilled, at room temperature or warmed again.
Please let me know how this recipe turns out for you in the comments. I’m always so eager for your feedback, and hope you love my recipes!
Spinach Pasta with Roasted Broccoli & Bell Pepper
This healthy vegetarian pasta features loads of spinach and roasted vegetables tossed with light balsamic sauce! Feel free to change up the vegetables or skip them completely for a simple, hearty spinach pasta recipe. Recipe is easily vegan and gluten free (see notes). Serve with a green side salad for a complete meal. Recipe yields 4 large or 6 more modest portions.
Ingredients
Roasted vegetables
- 1 large bunch of broccoli (about 1 ½ pounds), florets removed and sliced into bite-sized pieces
- 1 red bell pepper, sliced into 1-inch squares
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- Salt
Spinach pasta
- 8 ounces linguine or spaghetti (whole wheat if desired)
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 1 shallot bulb, sliced very thin (about ½ cup, sliced)
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon red pepper flakes
- 2 cloves garlic, pressed or minced
- 12 ounces baby spinach
- 2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
- 1 tablespoon lemon juice
- 1 tablespoon butter or olive oil
- Optional: 1 ounce finely grated Parmesan cheese* (about ¾ cup, grated), plus extra for garnishing
- Freshly ground black pepper, to taste
Instructions
- To prepare the roasted vegetables (optional, skip for a more simple spinach pasta): Preheat oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit. Line a large, rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper for easy cleanup. Transfer the sliced broccoli florets and bell pepper to the prepared baking sheet, drizzle with 1 tablespoon olive oil and toss until the vegetables are lightly coated in oil (add a little more olive oil if necessary). Sprinkle with salt, arrange the vegetables in an even layer and bake until the broccoli is tender and caramelized on the edges, tossing halfway, about 25 minutes.
- Once the vegetables are in the oven, bring a large pot of salted water to boil. Cook the pasta just until al dente, according to package directions. Before draining, carefully reserve about 1 cup of the pasta water. Drain and return the pasta to the pot.
- To prepare the balsamic spinach, in a large Dutch oven (my 5.5-quart Le Creuset is perfect here) or large sauté pan over medium heat, warm 2 tablespoons olive oil until shimmering. Add the sliced shallot, ¼ teaspoon salt and ¼ teaspoon red pepper flakes. Cook, stirring frequently, until the shallot is translucent, about 3 to 5 minutes. Add the garlic and cook, stirring constantly, until fragrant, about 20 seconds. While stirring constantly, add several big handfuls of spinach at a time until they have wilted, then repeat until all of the spinach is in the pot. Once the spinach has reduced a bit but is still bright green in parts (this happens quickly!), pour in the balsamic vinegar and remove the pot from heat.
- In your Dutch oven or in a large serving bowl, combine the roasted vegetables and cooked pasta with the spinach mixture. Add 1 tablespoon lemon juice, 1 tablespoon butter or olive oil and optional Parmesan. Drizzle in about ⅓ cup reserved pasta cooking water and gently toss to coat. Season to taste with additional salt (mine needed about ½ teaspoon more) and freshly ground black pepper. Divide into bowls and serve immediately, with extra grated Parmesan on top for bonus presentation points.
Notes
Change it up: Skip the roasted veggies for a simple weeknight pasta that’s full of greens, or change up the vegetables used.
Make it vegan/dairy free: Use olive oil instead of butter and omit the Parmesan. This pasta is great without the Parmesan, but you could add a light sprinkle of nutritional yeast for some cheesy flavor, if you’d like. Another option for extra savory flavor would be to add about ⅓ cup freshly toasted pine nuts or sliced almonds.
*A note on Parmesan: I always get a few comments on recipes that include Parmesan (“It’s not vegetarian!”) but Whole Foods actually makes a great animal rennet-free Parmesan. There’s plenty of flavor in here without the Parmesan, if you’d rather leave it out.
Make it gluten free: Choose a good gluten-free pasta (DeLallo makes one!).
Nutrition
The information shown is an estimate provided by an online nutrition calculator. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice. See our full nutrition disclosure here.
Can’t wait to try this!
I would like to try the ZestyFeta! Thanks for the giveaway!
The feta, olive, red pepper Salad Savor looks amazing!
Love your posts and have tried many of them. Cute doggie too!
Thank you, Gabrielle!
Can’t wait to try- I will eat roasted broccoli all day every day !
This pasta sounds wonderful. I’m a big fan of roasted veggies, so there’s a lot I could do with this. I was reading the recipe notes, and am totally confused about what rennet in parmesan cheese has to do with being vegetarian. That’s something I never encountered back in the days when I was a vegetarian… I’ve always thought that cheese is cheese, and cheese is a vegetarian option. I would be interested in any enlightenment you can offer about this.
Hi Susan! I share your philosophy on cheese, but some more strict vegetarians don’t. Rennet is an enzyme that helps curdle cheese. Microbial options exist, and those are vegetarian, but typically the enzymes are obtained as a by-product of meat production. Wikipedia actually has a pretty good explanation. Since it’s a by-product and I don’t eat meat, I don’t really try to avoid rennet (I want to be able to order pizza with friends without asking the waitress about it!), but some vegetarians do. Since I usually get comments about it, I thought I’d present a 100% vegetarian option with the recipe. Hope that makes sense!
This looks great! A healthy and light option-sounds perfect during the holiday season!
Thanks for sharing this- looks delish, and spinach is my favorite!
Mmmmm looks delicious!! Will definitely be trying this one.
I would like to try SHARP ASIAGO.
Another dinner idea for me. Thanks Kate! For salad savors flavor…I’m a cheddar and apple girl,I’m a true New Englander.
Champagne Vinaigrette
We love roasted veggies! We add whole cloves of garlic to roast with broccoli and carrots (or peppers, cauliflower, potatoes…) – soooo freaking good!! Can’t wait to try this – never thought to use balsamic!
Happy Holidays!!
I want to try them all but I would start with the vibrant blue.
I’m a sucker for sharp white cheddar, so I’d love to try the one with the sharp white cheddar, almond, and apple… sounds delish!
This will be dinner tonight – thank you, looks delicious!
Sounds delicious! I can’t wait to try!
This looks delicious! Thanks for the info on WF parm!
Yum! Making this tonight!
This will be on my weekend menu! Thanks for the recipe!
Balsamic+spinach +Pasta = OMG. Those are all my favorites, I will be making this next week for sure!!!!
Feta cheese, love it!
I get spinach in my CSA box for about 6 months straight out of the year – I’m always looking for new recipes that I can use it in!! This looks delicious, can’t wait to try it!
MMMM… Can’t wait to try this. I love one pot meals.
Can’t wait to make this- love the idea of balsamic with pasta!
For a boyfriend who love pasta, and being a girl who never makes it, I’m sure this will quickly turn into a house favorite- like the delicatta squash salad! <3 Thank you forever, Cookie and Kate!
Oh yay, I’m glad you like the delicata salad! Happy holidays!
Oh my, I think I’d have to try them all….
Thanks for all of the wonderful ideas – I always enjoy replicating your dishes. They come out pretty, healthy AND delicious!
I would try the fresh goat cheese one!
Yum – can’t wait to try this!
This looks awesome! Cookie and Kate is my go-to for weeknight AND weekend dinners!
Yum, this looks delicious! With all of my favorite vegetables.
All of the Salad Savors look so good! I’d probably try the goat cheese, cranberry and walnut one first.
The Tangy Beets and Asiago flavors both look great!
Yum goat cheese please!
Looks fabulous! And love Le Creuset!
I’d want to try the Bold Gorgonzola flavors for sure!
I love all of those combinations of salad savors. I will have to find them at my local grocery store. And I forget how great broccoli and pasta is sometimes.
Oh this looks so yummy! Love all the colors. I may have to change up my Christmas menu!! :)
I love beets in all forms and anyway that I can add these great vegetables is a big healthy plus. And they pair so well with goat cheese and pecans.
All of these would be great to keep at work to add to a quick bag of greens for lunch.
All the flavors sound great but I would probably try the goat cheese first!
This looks great, I never think to add broccoli to pasta!
This looks like a lovely vegetarian alternative for a Christmas feast! I’m always looking for great, healthy, flavourful recipes and this is a winner!
Looks absolutely yummy! Pretty much any kind of pasta, I will eat! Plus I’ve been craving broccoli lately so this would be a great way to eat it!
Yum! I love love love red bell peppers and broccoli. I can’t wait to make this! :0) Thanks for the great recipe.
I can’t wait to make this recipe!! I would love to try SaladSavors Fresh Goat Cheese!!! Sounds delicious!
This looks like a lovely balanced pasta recipe with lost of variations for each season with different vegetables. Cannot wait to give it a try! A Le Creseut is on my kitchen equipment dream list.
This recipes sounds and looks delicious! I’m always looking for new ways to add green to my dish without the use of a salad and the spinach and broccoli in this dish are the perfect way to do so.
Goat cheese!!!! Love love love it!
ooohhhh…the Salad Savers with roasted beets sounds perfect!
I loves me a good healthy pasta salad
I want to try the crisp SaladSavors that Kate mentioned in her post – it sounds delicious!