Pasta With Spinach, Feta and Yogurt
Published Oct. 16, 2024
- Total Time
- 20 minutes
- Prep Time
- 10 minutes
- Cook Time
- 10 minutes
- Rating
- Comments
- Read comments
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Ingredients
- 1cup plain Greek yogurt, preferably whole milk
- 8ounces feta, crumbled (about 1 cup)
- Fine sea salt, as needed
- 1pound short pasta, such as rigatoni, shells or campanelle
- 2tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, plus more for drizzling
- 2garlic cloves, thinly sliced
- ¼teaspoon red-pepper flakes, plus more to taste
- 1(10-ounce) package frozen spinach, thawed and squeezed dry
- 1cup freshly chopped mint, basil or cilantro, or a combination, for serving (optional)
- Finely grated zest and juice of 1 lemon
Nutritional analysis per serving (6 servings)
435 calories; 13 grams fat; 5 grams saturated fat; 0 grams trans fat; 5 grams monounsaturated fat; 1 gram polyunsaturated fat; 64 grams carbohydrates; 5 grams dietary fiber; 5 grams sugars; 17 grams protein; 519 milligrams sodium
Note: The information shown is Edamam’s estimate based on available ingredients and preparation. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.
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Preparation
- Step 1
Take the yogurt and feta out of the fridge so they can come up to room temperature while the pasta water boils.
- Step 2
Bring a large pot of salted water to boil. Add pasta and cook according to the package directions until al dente. Reserve 1 cup pasta water. Drain and set pasta aside.
- Step 3
Add olive oil to the pasta pot and set it over medium-high heat. Add the garlic and red-pepper flakes and cook until the edges are just golden brown, 1 to 2 minutes. Lower the heat and add the drained pasta. Add spinach, tossing to combine and warm it through.
- Step 4
Gently stir in the yogurt, crumbled feta, herbs (if using), lemon zest and juice of ½ lemon. Add reserved pasta water as needed to loosen the sauce. Taste and add more salt, red-pepper flakes, and lemon juice as needed. Drizzle with olive oil and serve.
Private Notes
Comments
To use fresh spinach, add coarsely chopped spinach to pan before adding pasta. Sauté spinach in oil and garlic for 2 minutes or so. Then add pasta and remaining ingredients.
I've been making a version of this for years. If I'm out of feta (usually a staple for me) Greek yogurt is jazzed up with dill, oregano and a few capers (for the missing briny element). Sometimes I'll add mint or sub it for one of the other herbs to still keep it in the vaguely Greek style. A grated tomato or cucumber is a nice cool topping.
A quick sauté of an 8 oz. bag of spinach in a skillet with a little bit of olive oil worked well for half the recipe. Just let any excess liquid evaporate. Left the spinach in the skillet & made the rest of the sauce there, rather than in the pasta pot, using slightly less additional olive oil than the recipe called for.
No feta so I used goat cheese and labne. Different but tasty.
Genevieve Ko writes in the 11/23/25 Cooking newsletter, "here’s one of her great pantry pastas. Sure, yogurt, feta and lemon aren’t actually stored in your pantry, but they’re pretty common fridge items. One of mine is baby spinach, so I’m going to use that instead of the frozen block the recipe calls for. Both types end up garlicky and tangy, slid through rigatoni and lightened by lemon."
Very sour. I would remove the feta completely and add lots of salt next time