Colorful Pasta with Spinach and Edamame

Colorful Pasta with Spinach and Edamame: filled with Nature’s fresh bounty! The intermingled spinach and pasta provide the perfect backdrop to set off the red bell pepper, tomatoes and cottage cheese. I also love how the Edamame and Zucchini add their own bit of “green-on-green” complexity. A feast for the eyes, that’s for sure.

I’m constantly exploring new ways to add protein-rich ingredients into pasta dishes. I know how easily vegetarian pasta can become overly carbohydrate-dense, as well as nutritionally imbalanced, even if it is utterly delicious. My first thought in this exploratory process is always dairy: milk, yogurt and cheese are my standard “go-to” items. Another reliable option, of course, is the bean family. In the pasta recipe presented here, I have used both: edamame (pronounce- “ed-uh-maa-may”, green soybeans) and cottage cheese. This pasta dish is certainly not lacking in the protein department: you get a hefty 15 g of protein with each serving!

It looks complicated – as if it might take a while to make, but it’s really a fairly fast-fix! If you follow my game plan, you can be ready to eat in about 30 min – no kidding! Perfect for a weeknight, or perhaps a lazy weekend, after a long and tiring week.

Follow the Game Plan: Meal in 30-minutes

Start heating the water for the pasta, and while waiting for it to boil, measure and set out the Farfalle (bow-tie pasta). Then start prepping the vegetables in the right order. Chop the onion first, add butter and brown it a bit in the microwave. Meanwhile, dice the Zucchini into medium, bite-sized chunks. Add the zuchini and spices to the onion, and it’s off to the microwave again. While it cooks, dice the bell pepper: add the bell pepper to the zucchini and microwave, yet again. When it’s done, cover loosely and set it aside. There’s the topping for your pasta – all done! Now it’s edamame’s turn: time to thaw it in the microwave.

Ah… the water’s probably starting to boil by now – so, add the pasta. Maybe you should also set the timer, or you might end up with a soggy, overcooked mush! It’s so easy to lose track of time while doing other things. After the spinach is trimmed and washed, you will need only a couple of min to rough-chop it. Next up, dice the tomato, and that’s it: end of prep work!

Now, measure out the cottage cheese and set out your plates, some olive oil, Parmesan and lemon wedges. When the timer beeps, drain the pasta, toss with spinach, cottage cheese, edamame, tomatoes and seasonings. See, not so bad, is it? Probably right around the 25 min mark, at this point.

Ready to eat? Okay, serve it up, in individual bowls/plates and top with the zucchini-bell pepper mixture. Cover loosely and heat it through in the microwave, one bowl at a time, till it is steaming hot. That’s when it will be at its yummiest!

A few turns of the pepper-grinder, a little Parmesan and a squirt of lemon – get ready to devour the feast you’ve just created – steaming hot, colorful pasta with spinach, edamame, and so much more!

Enjoy!

Colorful Pasta with Spinach and Edamame

Bow-tie pasta, tossed with fresh spinach, edamame, tomatoes, cottage cheese and seasonings, topped with sauteed zuchini and red bell peppers. Heated through to serve steaming hot, along with a lemon wedge, for a warm-satisfying one-dish meal.

5 from 3 votes

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Prep Time 20 minutes mins

Cook Time 15 minutes mins

0 minutes mins

Total Time 35 minutes mins

Course Main Course

Cuisine American, Italian

Servings 4 people

Calories 254 kcal

Equipment

• Microwave oven; if not available, procedure can be followed using a steamer assembly (will take a bit longer, details in recipe notes)

Ingredients

  

1x2x3x

• 2 cups Bow-tie pasta also called Farfalle pasta
• 3 cups cups Fresh spinach trimmed, washed and rinsed thoroughly; chopped roughly
• 1/2 cup Cottage cheese large curd preferred; if not available, can use coarsely crumbled paneer (see instructions in Recipe notes); for vegan options – see suggestions in Recipe notes
• 1 cup Edamame – shelled frozen, thawed is OK; if not available, use cooked chick peas (garbanzo beans) – canned beans OK too
• 1/2 cup Tomato – diced small 1 medium Roma – any other variety or red tomatoes OK too
• 1 cup Zucchini – diced 1 medium, cut into bite-sized pieces; also called "courgette"; if not available, can use other squash varieties, such as yellow squash, chayote squash, butternut squash, etc.; cooking times will likely need to be modified slightly.
• 1/4 cup Fresh red bell pepper – medium diced approximately 1 cm square pieces
• 2 tbsp Onion – chopped yellow/white preferred; red OK, will make pasta look dark
• 2 tsp Butter for vegan option: substitute with oil or vegan butter
• 3/4 tsp Salt adjust as per preference
• 1/2 tsp Black pepper – freshly crushed preferred coarse texture
• 1 tbsp Dried basil
• 1 tsp Crushed red pepper adjust as per spiciness preferred
• 1 whole Lime/lemon – cut into wedges if not avaiable: OK to use bottled juice
• 1/4 cup Parmesan cheese – finely shredded/grated if not available, use a different hard, aged cheese

Instructions

 

• Add about 6-7 cups of water to a medium large pot (3-4 quart/liter). Start heating the water for the pasta, and while waiting for it to boil, measure and set out the bow-tie pasta also called Farfalle.

Prepare the vegetables in the order described below

• Chop the onions.

  Add 1/2 tsp butter and microwave for 2 min on medium-high power (60-70%). (Steamer instructions in Recipe Notes)
• Meanwhile, dice the zucchini into medium, bite-sized chunks: this should be ready by the time the onion is done.
  
• Add the zucchini, 1.5 tsp butter, 1/8 tsp salt, 1/8 tsp black pepper, 1/8 tsp crushed red pepper toss and microwave again: 2 min on high. (Steamer instructions in Recipe Notes)
  
• Dice the bell pepper, add to the cooked zucchini and microwave: 1 min on high. (Steamer instructions in Recipe Notes)
  
• When done, cover loosely and set it aside – this is the topping for the pasta.
  
• Thaw edamame: microwave on high, 1 minute (Steamer instructions in Recipe Notes) (Skip step if using cooked chick-peas)
  
• Add the pasta to the boiling water, stir and bring back to a vigorous boil. Cook 7-8 min, stirring periodically to prevent sticking / burning on the bottom (al-dente- fully cooked, but firm, not mushy). I recommend setting the timer to keep track of time: pasta can become mushy when overcooked.
  
• While the pasta cooks, rough-chop the spinach. If your spinach is already trimmed and washed, rough-chopping it only takes a couple of min.
  
• Now dice the tomato and slice the lemon into serving-sized wedges.
  
• When the timer beeps, drain the pasta and top immediately with spinach, cottage cheese, edamame, tomatoes and the rest of the salt, pepper, crushed red pepper, and basil. Toss gently with 2 spoons – try not to mash the pasta, it is a bit delicate.
  
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• Serve the warm pasta in individual bowls/plates and top with the prepared zucchini-bell pepper mixture. Cover loosely and heat it through in the microwave, one bowl at a time for 2 min on high. Make sure it comes out steaming hot – that's when it will be at its yummiest!
  
• Top the hot pasta with freshly ground black pepper, a little Parmesan and serve with a lemon wedge, perhaps garnished with a little sprig of fresh basil for extra flair!
  
• Enjoy!

Notes

If you want to make this dish in under 30 min, follow the plan described in the directions.

If microwave is not available: use a steamer pan

Cooking times with a steamer pan will take a little longer than using a microwave, with a slightly different texture.

• onions: 3-4 min,
• zucchini: 3-4 min;
• red bell pepper: 2 min.
• Then follow the same procedure as given above. The vegetables should be firm-tender, and not cooked till they become mushy soft.
• Final steaming of individual servings: 3 minutes

For a vegan option:

• Substitute butter with olive oil (or other mild oil).
• Substitute cottage cheese with 1/2 cup coarsely crumbled extra firm tofu, marinated with 1/8 tsp salt, 1/2 tsp dried basil and 1/2 tsp lemon juice – gently mix and set aside to marinate, at least 20 min.
• substitute the grated Parmesan with a little sprinkling of almond flour (blanched almonds), seasoned with just a hint of salt

Nutrition

Calories: 254kcalCarbohydrates: 31gProtein: 15gFat: 8gSaturated Fat: 3gCholesterol: 16mgSodium: 661mgPotassium: 543mgFiber: 5gSugar: 4gVitamin A: 2858IUVitamin C: 29mgCalcium: 149mgIron: 2mg

Keyword bow-tie pasta, cottage cheese, edamame, farfalle, fresh spinach, hot meal, Italian food, one-dish meal, pasta, quick-fix meal, under 30 min, vegan option, vegetarian, zucchini

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