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.
This looks positively delicious! As for which SaladSavors flavor I’d love to try, the tangy beets look divine and would add a punch of beautiful color to the dish!
Healthy pasta? I’m in! When it comes to roasted broccoli, I could eat it every day of the week. As for SaladSavors, it’s surprisingly (and delightfully!) hard to choose. I’m down to between Zesty and Tangy, but if push came to shove, I’d probably go Tangy. Zesty I’m more apt to make at home, but beets I get out every chance I can because somehow my love for them doesn’t translate into my own kitchen!
Thick pasta noodles look very beautiful! As for SaladSavors, I would be happy with any that suits my vegan diet!
Sharp white cheddar! YUM!
The apple and cheddar looks awesome! I had never heard of these before, definitely looking for them at the store now!
I’d love to try the asiago, artichoke, and sun dried tomato one!
I will try the tangy beet salad savers. I hope I am able to find them. The recipe sounds great, but to be honest I am busy making your cranberry orange zest for Christmas gifts. The first batch disappeared!
All the SaladSavors look delicious! I’d like to try the Tangy Beets version.
I would try the Zesty Feta. It sounds delicious.
Looks delicious! Do you ever use a cast iron dutch oven?
I love the combination of cheddar and apples
This pasta looks amazing!
Thanks, Kate, for the introduction to Salad Savors! I’m always putting these kinds of combinations together for salads, but having them ready to go would obviously save a bunch of time. Honestly, they all look yummy to me, but I think I’m most attracted to the “Bold,” “Tangy,” and “Sharp” combinations …
I vote for Tangy Goat Cheese! Love the whole wheat pasta. Why does anyone buy the stripped down white version??!!
The salad savors idea is great! I’d choose the Crisp White Cheddar; I think my whole family would like this option.
Wow! This looks great. And I’m intrigued by the salad topping with the apple chips!
I would like to try the Bold Gorgonzola SaladSavors salad topping. It reminds me of a salad from an Italian restaurant.
Wow! OK amazing recipe AND a giveaway?? Feels like my birthday lol. Good luck to everyone, and thank you to everyone involved for making a giveaway possible! Happy holidays, hope you and Cookie are staying warm and happy.
Thank you, Taylor! Happy holidays! :)
Oooh, I love a tasty champagne vinagrette!
The pasta looks fabulous! I just made your lentil soup for dinner tonight, amazing! Can’t wait to make this pasta!
I would love to try any of the flavors never heard. delicious sounding.
Oh, the Salad Savers I’d like to try are Sharp Asiago and Tangy Beets!
I’m a vegan, so the SaladSavors don’t appeal to me, but the concept is a good idea!
I love roasted broccoli and since I am on a goat cheese feta kick I would ask for feta and walnuts. Yummiliciousness.
So I have been trying to think of an easy and tasty dish to throw in as a meal during the holidays with family. I think I just found it! I had already decided to make your vegan lentil soup as well. Yum! I’m a sucker for blue cheese, so that would be my salad topper of choice. Thanks for the wonderful recipes and happy holidays!
I would try the ‘fresh’ flavor of SaladSavers with goat cheese. Yum!
I think the Crisp Salad Savers sound delicious! I love apples and cheddar cheese, and toasted almonds are a great addition to that combo! This recipe sounds delicious, can’t wait to try it!
everything looks delicious. I pack salads for my boyfriend every day for lunch, and those salad savers will definitely be something I look out for.
the feta would totally be up his alley!
The pasta looks amazing! I would love to try the gorgonzola, dried pear, and toasted almonds flavor, as well as the tangy beet one :)
Delicious!
Looks super yummy! Can’t wait to try the salad savers!
the asiago and sundried tomato sound delish!
Looks amazing! I would go for the Sharp Asiago, personally!
Another great looking recipe!
This pasta looks colorful!
Fresh goat cheese sounds super yummy!!
Love that this dish is heavy on vegetables and uses whole grain pasta!
This pasta looks great! I think I’ll try with Brussels.
I want to try them all! And I can’t wait to make this pasta!
Love your blog and want to make all of the dishes. The ones that I have gotten the chance to make, have been delicious. Thank you.
So, I have already made literally the first 2 pages of your salad section of the blog haha! I love all of your recipes and have been making them for the past 3 months! I am definitely putting this one on the list to make for sure! I would love to win the Le Creuset French Oven!
I’d like to try them all, but especially the Fresh and Zesty combos!
Awesome giveaway!
I miss pasta! I need to eat it more and this recipe seems like a good place to start!
Yum! Always love your recipes. I’d love to try the goat cheese salad savor!
Id love to try the sharp asaigo, artichoke, sundried tomato! I am definitely going to try this recipe as well!!
Crisp is totally up my taste buds alley!
I would love to try the zesty feta! This pasta looks amazing!
This pasta sounds perfect for the cold weather! It has a lot of fresh vegetables too, which is perfect. I would love to try to the glazed pecan SaladSavors (or the marinated beet –it was such a close tie!).
I would like to try the SaladSavors- Sharp Asiago!