Recipe

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This spinach Alfredo is a quick and creamy pasta recipe that comes together fast for when you just want something simple and satisfying.

It's cheesy, garlicky, and packs your leafy greens in every bite. This spinach Alfredo pasta is the easiest way to get a veggie win at dinner.

Creamy Alfredo with Spinach

I use my easy homemade Alfredo sauce as the base for this recipe and toss in a few handfuls of chopped fresh spinach. It wilts quickly and adds extra nutrition to this meal.

To keep everyone satisfied, I sometimes use protein pasta or add the spinach to my cottage cheese Alfredo recipe. No one complains since this is the cheesier version of my creamy spinach tortellini, another winner dinner.

Ingredients

The base of this sauce is butter and a garlic clove (or garlic powder). To make it creamy and cheesy, you’ll add cream or half and half, whole milk, and grated Parmesan cheese. Aside from salt and pepper, I like the unique flavor that nutmeg provides (omit it if you don’t have it). To turn this salsa into a meal, use your favorite pasta and chopped spinach (by chopping the spinach, you keep it from clumping up in the pasta).

Baby Spinach vs. Regular or Frozen

You can use fresh, baby, or frozen spinach to make pasta with spinach because, since it's chopped and simmered in the Alfredo sauce, the texture difference disappears completely.

How to Make Spinach Alfredo

The three simple steps to make this spinach Alfredo happen are:

Cook the pasta as usual, and while it cooks, prepare the sauce so that they finish together and can be combined right away.
Make the sauce by sautéing garlic with butter. Then add the cream, milk, cheese, and seasonings. Don’t forget to stir constantly! Once it simmers, let it cook for about 5 minutes.
Combine the Alfredo sauce with the chopped spinach and the cooked pasta. Stir gently to combine and warm the dish.

Getting the Perfect Sauce Consistency

Reserving pasta water is the trick to getting a perfect Alfredo. If you want to thin out the sauce a bit, at the end, add 1 tablespoon or so of reserved pasta water at a time until you get the desired consistency.

20-Minute Spinach Alfredo

Servings: 6

Prep Time: 5

Cook Time: 15

Total Time: 20

This spinach Alfredo is a quick and creamy pasta recipe that comes together fast for when you just want something simple and satisfying.

5 from 3 votes

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Ingredients

3 tablespoons butter
1 garlic clove, minced
1 cup cream or half and half
½ cup whole milk
1 ½ cups grated Parmesan cheese
¼ teaspoon salt
¼ teaspoon ground pepper
⅛ teaspoon nutmeg, optional
2 cups chopped spinach
16 ounces of pasta

Instructions

Cook the pasta:

Cook the pasta following the instructions on the box. Drain the water and set aside. I like to make the sauce as the pasta cooks, so they finish together and can be combined right away.

Make the sauce:

Over medium heat, melt the butter in a skillet with sides. Add the minced garlic and cook, stirring, until it turns golden, about 1 minute. If using garlic powder, melt the butter, add the powder, and immediately proceed to the next step.
Pour in the cream or half-and-half and milk, stirring constantly. Add the grated Parmesan cheese, salt, pepper, and nutmeg (if using) and combine. Bring the sauce to a light simmer and then reduce the heat to low and continue cooking the Alfredo sauce for about 5 minutes.

Combine:

Add the chopped spinach to the Alfredo sauce and stir. Simmer it for about a minute, then add the pasta to the skillet and use tongs to combine it with the Alfredo sauce. Serve it with additional Parmesan cheese on top.

Notes

Swap the minced garlic clove for ½ teaspoon garlic powder.
You can use fresh, baby, or frozen spinach for this recipe because, since it's chopped and simmered in the Alfredo, the texture difference disappears completely.