Presto Pasta Night: Spicy Spinach Pasta With Garlic And Basil

I've been feeling a bit like a blog failure.  I don't answer my comments in a timely manner, or visit my favorite blogs as often as I would like.  Things are very scattered in my life, and I apologize to everyone who has taken the time to leave comments. You can't know how much I appreciate reading them.  Cooking food is a challenge for me right now.  My enthusiasm for preparing food is on the wane. But, my desire to eat a good meal is as strong as ever.  I find myself eyeing recipes that boast of being easy, and requiring  no more than 30 minutes to prepare.  But, ease and speed in preparation mustn't sacrifice good taste.  And this recipe for spicy spinach pasta fit my current cooking requirements. It took about 11 minutes to prepare, but was so full of flavor, it was hard to limit myself to a reasonable serving.   It's full of garlic, basil and cheese, with a nice kick from crushed red pepper. You can leave out the red pepper if you like.  But, don't skimp on the garlic and basil.  It tastes marvelous, and will envelope you with a garlicky smell announcing your presence to everyone before they see you.  Some people don't like the smell of garlic.  Well, they better not hang around me, because I often reek of it.

This is a great recipe for Presto Pasta Night, which was created by the lovely Ruth at Once Upon A Feast.  Each week Ruth has a Roundup of recipes posted by pasta lovers from all over the world. Drop by her site and check them out.

By the way, I used dried spinach linquine, and it had a lovely green color, which isn't apparent from the photo.  But, green it was!

Spicy Spinach Pasta With Garlic And Basil

Bon Appétit (February 2007)

12    ounces spinach linguine
6    tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
1    cup chopped fresh basil, divided
4-5    garlic cloves, minced
1/2    teaspoon dried crushed red pepper
1/2    cup dry white wine or water from cooking the pasta
1 1/2 cups grated Pecorino Romano cheese, divided
preparation

Cook linguine in large pot of boiling salted water until just tender but still firm to bite. Drain, reserving 1 cup pasta cooking liquid. Return pasta to same pot.

While the pasta is cooking or after it has been cooked and drained, heat olive oil in heavy large skillet over medium-high heat. Add 1/2 cup basil, garlic, and crushed red pepper; stir 1 minute. Add wine (or pasta cooking water) and boil until slightly reduced, about 3 minutes. Add mixture from skillet, remaining 1/2 cup basil, and 3/4 cup cheese to pasta. Toss over medium heat until sauce coats pasta, adding reserved pasta liquid by 1/4 cupfuls if the pasta seems dry. Season with salt and pepper. Transfer to bowl. Sprinkle with remaining 3/4 cup cheese.

Makes 4 to 6 side-dish servings.  (I ate mine as a main dish.)

Comments

[Lydia]

Nothing wrong with quick and easy and delicious! I love the color of this dish, with the green of the basil and the pasta. For me, there would absolutely have to be red pepper -- maybe even a bit extra!

[Kalyn]

You are not a blog failure! I think it's ok to blog however and whatever you feel like at that current time. After all it is your blog. As far as answering comments, I also have a hard time keeping up with it. I actually think most people love reading the comments on a post, and don't really care that much if the blog author has responded to every single person. But maybe I'm just rationalizing, because when people leave comments while I'm teaching school I just can't possibly keep up on them.

[Lisa]

Sher, this pasta looks delectable. And I can see that the pasta is green! I only wish I were sticking a fork into it right now. :)

[anne]

That looks scrumptious. Mmmm. I too am a garlic aficionado. I like the idea of using the spinach pasta.

On the "blog failure" - you are most definitely not that. I hope things are going alright in your world - feel free to email any time. Chin up, my friend.

[bluezebra]

sher your spinach and basil pasta looks fantastic!!! I adore spinach and basil together. And garlic, well, now you're just teasing me. :D

It's so funny about "What Did You Eat"! That's a first question out of anyone in my family too!

BZ

[Deborah]

I'm constantly on the look out for quick and easy meals - otherwise we wouldn't eat until really late every night!! This looks fabulous. I'm going to see if I can find some spinach linguine!

[mallow]

Garlic, basil, and cheese - it hardly gets better than that!

[Alisha]

This look great for a quick and easy meal.

My cooking (and blogging) has taken a backseat recently and I need to get back into the swing of things. It's good to know that life happens to other people too. (And you are far from a blog failure -- just look at this yummy post!)

[Katiez]

Hmmm, I'm trying to figure out how you did all that in 11 minutes and still cooked the pasta? Whatever, it looks wonderful and I'm rather a big fan of fast and easy myself.

[tigerfish]

Love your pasta dishes. They always seem so easy to make using simple basic ingredients. :)

[Callipygia]

Boy does this look mouthwatering. I would gladly walk around with garlic breath for some of this pasta.

[Anh]

This is a simple yet very delicious meal! I wish I could have that right now.

[Elena]

don't feel bad that you don't blog every day! I just discovered your site, I think while surfing BlogHer at work, and even emailed myself the link to your blog so I could favorite it at home! so keep up the great blogging but don't feel forced to do it every day. have a great, I guess I should say, meal,instead of, day!

[Christine]

Well you heard the folks, Sher. A blog failure you are definitely NOT! Look at how much time I let go by between posts. I used to get nervous if I didn't blog at least 4 times a week, thinking people would quit reading my blog. Well you know what? Those who really care about you are going to read your posts no matter how many or how few you put up. In case you haven't noticed, you are a very special, well-liked person. So you just do what you can, when you can, when you feel like it. Those who know you understand and those who don't ... well that's their loss.

[Shannon]

Sher, I'm just glad you're okay--I was a bit worried about you! It's okay to slack on the blog, as I just wrote about on mine. And I echo Anne, feel free to email if you need an ear; I'm always here for you.

p.s. - Barrett's band is gonna play in your neck of the woods, sorta, next week. In Chico! Okay, I guess it's not that close. :)

[Glenna]

OMG, we're on the same wavelength! I just posted the same thing about feeling so far behind with comments and seeing others' blogs. Maybe it's an end of the summer drag or something. I can't seem to get past work and the most basic of keeping the home life together kind of stuff.

[Kelly Cat's favorite human]

Trying new recipes or making old favorites, writing about them, sharing the experience with people of a like mind... sounds like fun, doesn't it? :-)

A few people have to work at their blogs to make money, the rest of us get to be amateurs, doing it for the fun of it.

And as the man says, Garlic don't need no reason!

[Ruth]

It does look awesome. I'm drooling as I write this and rushing out the door to get more fresh basil! Thanks for sharing with Presto Pasta Nights.

[Belinda]

Awww, Sher, you are definitely not a blog failure! I love visiting your blog, and reading about the recipes you share, and the kitty cat and squirrel adventures. You are always kind and thoughtful, and an animal lover is always a special person in my book. :-) And speaking of quick and easy...I love quick and easy recipes. Sometimes I feel inept when I see all of the amazing things all of you come up with. This pasta with the spinach and garlic and fresh basil sounds heavenly.

[Dayna]

Your rendition of this dish looks delicious.
Certainly on my must try list.

[Barbara, IL]

Eh, don't feel like a blog failure. I think people put too much pressure on themselves to keep up with their blogs--it becomes a chore and obligation. I think blogging should be for fun. You get to it when you get to it! :)

[mosaic cats]

This is NOT fair, Sher!
I came here looking for WCB (when I saw you were hosting we wanted to play!), but I see THIS!!! I am trying so hard to low carb it again, and this means abstaining from you blog (even though I relapsed last night and saw another pasta dish with corn and peas I would LOVE! Oh, no. Corn and Tomatoes. I'm the one who adds peas to every pasta dish I make!)

I have to go away now. I can't be trusted to be too near your blog. I'll check back.
Mosaic (Carb A$$) Lady

[Deborah Dowd]

Everyone goes through a blogfunk once in awhile. After all bloggers have lives too! Your spinach pasta looks great and a perfect dish for our family's meatless Fridays!

[Mansi]

Wow, simple and nutritious! perfect for cooking a quick meal:)

[Paula from Only Cookware]

I love quick and easy meals and I love the ingredients in this one. I will give it a go. Like your blog by the way. Hope you can visit mine sometime: http://www.only-cookware.com/blog/

[maisie mitchell]

healthy and really easy to make great !

[Barry from - microwaves for sale]

I'm not a big fan of Spinach but my mum loves the stuff!

With mothersday comming soon I think this would be a nice idea for a mothers day lunch.

Looks like an easy meal to put together too, thanks

Barry :-)

[Whitney Cervantez]

This looks so yummy! I always have pasta at the house, and I typically have fresh spinach. I am tired of using my spinach for only salads, so I am excited to try this recipe tonight! I am a mother of 3 little ones under the age of 5, and I need something that is fairly fast to prepare. Looks great, and exactly what I want to eat for dinner tonight! Thanks for the great idea :)