Creamy Spinach Spaghetti with Roasted Tomatoes

I’m not sitting here in my leopard print cat suit – that outfit has been safely returned to the fancy dress shop and is waiting for you to hire it.  Your turn now!

And you won’t believe this.  I’m sure you will think I’m making it up, but in the mail box addressed to Archie and Arabella was an invitation to an 18th birthday party for a mutual friend.  That’s nice in itself but then the fine print on the invitation said, ‘Dress up and come on down.  Fancy dress – Country and Western’.  This is a true story.

The party is this Saturday night and Arabella is already asking me what she can wear.  ‘I don’t have any boots mum’, ‘Where can I get a checkered shirt, mum?’, ‘Would Fred’s boots fit me?  (Yes, Fred’s boots are still here.  He left them here when he came down from Gunnadah to take Arabella to her formal).  ‘They might be a bit big for me ,mum’,  and ‘I’ll wear my high wasted jeans.  Can I borrow your belt?’,  ‘And what about Archie, mum?  What’s he going to wear?’


And Archie’s saying, ‘I don’t have anything to wear, mum.  I’ll have to hire a costume.  Should I take my guitar?’

Creamy Spinach Spaghetti with Roasted Tomatoes

I buried my head in the ultimate distraction, my computer, and I found this wonderful pasta recipe on Joanne’s fabulous blog, Eats Well With Others.  Joanne lives in New York city and is studying to be a doctor, is doing her PhD, she runs marathons, is a vegetarian AND a blogger.  Her writing is witty and entertaining, she tells a good story, her images are gorgeous and the food is sensational.  If you haven’t visited Eats Well with Others, I highly recommend that you do – you will fall in love.

A great vegetarian meal

Here’s a recipe that Joanne recently posted for a Creamy Spinach Spaghetti with Roasted Tomatoes.  I just loved the colours of this pasta dish with the contrast between red and green and I loved how the creaminess came from avocado rather than a dairy product.  I quickly scrawled down the ingredients to make this, rushed out to the shops, purchased what was required only to come home and remember my food processor blew up so I had no means to puree the sauce.

I roasted a medley of heirloom cherry tomatoes that added a great splash of colour

Never mind!  I persevered.  I decided my pasta sauce just wouldn’t be so smooth.  I rolled up the spinach and basil leaves into little cigars and finely chopped them and I mashed the avocado with a fork.  For what my dish lacks in presentation, it makes up for in taste because everyone in my family loved this pasta and having made double the recipe there was plenty left for tomorrow’s lunch boxes.

This is a wonderful mid-week meal.

Now…Joanne’s recipe is in imperial only so here are some approximate metric conversions:

  • 1 pint tomatoes = 500gms
  • 8 oz spaghetti = 225gms
  • 1 lb spinach = 450gms

Sprinkled with parmesan cheese

For the entire recipe and some images of what the dish is supposed to look like, please visit Joanne’s blog.  Oh, and I cooked this dish using organic spelt pasta so my version was also gluten-free – well, not exactly gluten-free because spelt does have a little gluten in it but it was wheat-free.

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Comments

  1. this looks absolutely delicious! I love how blogs can form a safety blanket between you and the real world (even if it’s only for 5 minutes)

  2. lovely looking meal. i like the look of non processed sauces sometimes – they have that lovely rustic look to them .. super yum!

  3. I eyed this dish on Joanne’s site too! You did a wonderful job at improvising without a food processor…now let’s see how you improvise those costumes 😉

  4. Gosh… That is honestly the most beautifully plated pasta dish I have ever seen. Perfect swirly and majestic height. Love your angles too!! Awesome stuff. Thanks for sharing will hop on to Joanne’s blog now =)

  5. The Squishy Monster says:

    I love how this is crowned with heirlooms–so gorgeous!

  6. yummychunklet says:

    What a delicious presentation!

  7. I love the presentation! So inviting and delicious!

  8. This recipe is so incredible in flavour and I love your presentation my friend 🙂

    Cheers
    Choc Chip Uru
    http://gobakeyourself.wordpress.com/

  9. Mandy - The Complete Cook Book says:

    Seriously, you should open a costumes store – you will make a mint! Lovely pasta.
    🙂 Mandy xo

    • hotlyspiced says:

      Yes, another thing I should have done along with being an orthodontist – I’ve actually spent more on their teeth than I have on their costumes!

  10. love the recipe, pinned the picture and now i am off to look at the leopard print costume! outrageous! c

  11. Looks like a very tasty vegetarian pasta dish. Lately I’ve been on a bit of a pasta kick as well as a side dish as I’m tired of rice and trying to avoid having any potatoes in the house until after my surgery etc.

    http://a-boleyn.livejournal.com/

    • hotlyspiced says:

      I hope you can have that surgery soon. And yes, pasta is good because it’s usually quick, easy and inexpensive. Not to mention versatile!

  12. What a beautiful dish, Charlie.
    Thank goodness cowboy theme is relatively easy to put together, it could have been dungeons and dragons!
    Eva http://kitcheninspirations.wordpress.com

    • hotlyspiced says:

      Yes Eva. I have to be grateful for small mercies. At least they both have a pair of jeans so we’re halfway there!

  13. This is definitely a great looking dish so I went to check out Joanne’s blog and you are right, it has great recipes.

  14. InTolerant Chef says:

    Now that looks tasty indeed! I hope you can get a new food processor soon, good equipment makes life so much easier.
    I can’t believe there was another fancy dress invitation! They must know you guys are good sports and will get into the spirit of it all 🙂 Good luck with this one!

    • hotlyspiced says:

      I’m hoping I’m getting a food processor for Christmas. Since not having one I’ve realised they’re a kitchen essential.

  15. Victoria at Flavors of the Sun says:

    When in doubt, pasta. Works for me! This looks great–and Joanne’s blog is wonderful as well.

  16. Claire @ Claire K Creations says:

    Another saying for you today ‘when it rains it pours.’ I think that sums up your dress up requirements for the year!

    Pasta looks delicious. I love the sound of using avo instead of cream. Yum!

    • hotlyspiced says:

      I hope that’s it for the dress-ups. Like you say, ‘when it rains it pours’. I can’t believe the costume requirements I’ve had lately.

  17. I love Joanne’s blog. I’m not surprised this was amazing!

  18. This looks absolutely delicious! Hats what I do what the world gets a little over whelming, I cook, food is my saviour! Hope everything worked out

  19. Love this dish! Saw it on Joanne’s but haven’t tried it yet.

  20. Nic@diningwithastud says:

    I love Jo’s blog! She is such an inspiration 🙂 I dont know how she finds the time to do it all, and she does it damn well!!

  21. Love the idea of avocado as the sauce. Look forward to hearing about how country Arabella & Archie can get. – Definitely take the Guitar

  22. I’m in favor of any new way of preparing pasta. Roasting the cherry tomatoes would bring so much more flavor to the dish. A great recipe from a great blog. Thanks for pointing me in that direction.

  23. Juliet Batten says:

    What great creativity you show with your cooking. Hope your kids can be creative too in finding their fancy dress.

  24. My mum is wheat-free rather than gluten-free so it’s nice to see spelt being showcased! ‘Course, she’s still allergic to tomato, but you can’t win ’em all 😛

  25. Have you considered opening a fancy dress shop, Charlie? I think you could make a fortune.

    I love Joanne too – she’s amazing with all she does AND to cook like that? Don’t tell her but I think she’s the one we’re supposed to hate because she’s got it all. Have you seen her photo? She’s beautiful too! and young!

    She’s just terrific and your pasta dish is gorgeous too. The dish is perfect pureed or au naturel. 🙂

  26. Lorraine @ Not Quite Nigella says:

    Hehe ok now I’m convinced that you definitely need to open up a costume store. i really thought we only needed costumes for Hallowe’en! 😛 And I think you should man the store in your leopard outfit! 😀

    • hotlyspiced says:

      I can give you the directions of where to go to get one for yourself Lorraine. It’s a very comfortable jumpsuit so perfect for traveling, dining, shopping – the possibilities are endless! xx

  27. Had a quick look at Joanne’s blog – her spaghetti was certainly Green! Looked lovely and lush.

  28. Seriously, Charlie, you are a super mom.
    The pasta looks yummilicious! Love the way you piled it up. Very chic.

  29. so beautiful….

  30. This is one fabulous spaghetti dish. I love the flavors here. And I cannot believe there is another costume party! That is just too funny.

  31. I’m definitely visiting Joanne’s blog for this recipe. I have cherry tomatoes, pasta and spinach already and this looks perfect for a lovely and light dinner!

  32. You are so impressive making this so quickly 🙂 And your version looks as delightful as Joanne’s did!

  33. Looks delicious!

  34. Sweet Posy Dreams says:

    I think your presentation is pretty special!

  35. I have all the ingredients for this really tasty dish! I wouldn’t have expected the avocado, and that’s got me quite intrigued! I think this will be dinner tonight. I look forward to Joanne’s blog, too. I really feel for you with all these costume party invitations. I would grow weary!

  36. Karen (Back Road Journal) says:

    I think that your pasta looks every bit as appetizing as Joanne’s. Congratulations to both of you for a delicious looking dish.

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