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    Linguine with Spinach and Sun-Dried Tomato Cream Sauce

    Published: Feb 16, 2019 / 155 Comments

    495.7K shares
    • Facebook2.1K
    Recipe Print

    Linguine with Spinach and Sun-Dried Tomato Cream Sauce takes just 30 minutes to make! This simple Italian pasta is a great choice for a weeknight dinner! Linguine is generously coated in a comforting creamy sauce made with garlic and Parmesan cheese.

    linguine with spinach and sun-dried tomato cream sauce on a plate

    This delicious linguine has been inspired by the sun-dried tomato pasta I made a while back.  This recipe features the best homemade pasta sauce you'll ever try!  It's full of flavor and color!  The creamy linguine Alfredo sauce is made with garlic, paprika, cream, and shredded Parmesan cheese.

    This linguine recipe makes a great meatless dinner.  If you crave some protein, you can easily add grilled chicken or cooked shrimp to the dish.  Just like in this simple chicken pasta or this shrimp pasta.

    linguine with spinach and sun-dried tomato cream sauce in a skillet

    Linguine with creamy alfredo sauce

    • Creamy comfort food. In this recipe, linguine is smothered in a simple homemade alfredo sauce made with cream, garlic, and Parmesan cheese. The silky sauce coats the linguine to produce one of the most comforting and decadent pasta dishes you'll ever try! Sun-dried tomatoes and spinach add so much flavor to the creamy deliciousness!
    • 30-minute recipe. This beautiful pasta dish takes only 30 minutes to make.
    • Only 9 ingredients. Simple recipes are the best! This recipe uses basic ingredients that you can easily buy in any grocery store.
    • Beautiful presentation. This easy pasta makes a beautiful and colorful presentation. Creamy alfredo sauce has a light pink color thanks to sun-dried tomatoes and paprika. Spinach also adds vibrancy to the linguine!

    What is linguine?

    • Linguine is a long, thin, ribbon-style pasta of Italian origin.  It's similar to fettuccine and spaghetti.  Linguine is like flattened spaghetti and not as wide as fettuccine.
    • Linguine originated in Genoa of Liguria region, Italy.
    • Linguine is usually served with seafood or with pesto sauce.  Other common dishes made with linguine include puttanesca sauce, linguine carbonara, and linguine with clams.
    • Linguine is made with durum wheat semolina.

    Fun fact: Did you know that "linguine" in Italian means "little tongues"? "Linguina" means "little tongue" in Italian, and "linguine" is plural of "linguina". The root of the word is "lingua" (Latin) which means tongue.

    linguine with spinach and sun-dried tomato cream sauce on a plate

    Substitutions

    This pasta dish is very flexible, and you can use all kinds of different ingredients:

    • Don't have linguine? Use spaghetti or fettuccine pasta.
    • What can you use to replace Parmesan? Use Mozzarella cheese, Pecorino Romano, or Asiago cheese.
    • Don't have spinach? Use Swiss chard, arugula, or kale.

    Linguine vs. fettuccine

    • Both linguine and fettuccine are ribbon style, long strand pasta.  Fettuccine is a flat thick pasta.  Fettuccine is noticeably wider than linguine.  Linguine is more like flattened spaghetti.
    • The most common dish made with fettuccine is fettuccine alfredo.  Linguine is usually served with seafood, pesto, carbonara sauce, or with clams.

    Linguine vs. spaghetti

    • Both linguine and spaghetti are ribbon-style long-strand pasta.  They are very similar in shape.  Linguine is like a flatter version of spaghetti.
    • Spaghetti is usually served with tomato sauce or meat.  Linguine is traditionally served with seafood or pesto.

    Sauces that go well with linguine

    • White cream pasta sauce.  Linguine tastes amazing when coated in the white cheese Italian pasta sauce.   Make simple white cream pasta sauce for linguine or any other pasta!
    • Sun-dried tomato cream sauce.   Sun-dried tomatoes and basil in a homemade creamy Mozzarella sauce will make a perfect sauce for linguine.  This sun-dried tomato pasta recipe shows you how to make it.
    • Alfredo sauce.  Make linguine alfredo by following this recipe for chicken broccoli alfredo.  You can even add chicken and broccoli, or keep them out of the recipe and just follow the steps for the alfredo sauce.

    Gluten-free friendly recipe

    • You can easily make this recipe gluten free by using gluten free linguine.

    What to serve with linguine

    • Bread.  Serve Baguette or Italian garlic bread.
    • Fresh salad.  Make this tomato cucumber avocado salad or tomato mozzarella salad.
    • Spinach salad.  Because this linguine has spinach, it would be a great combination to serve it with a basic spinach salad.  Just toss together some spinach leaves with shredded Parmesan cheese, salt, pepper, and olive oil.  Or, if you want something more sophisticated, try this spinach salad with prosciutto and pears.  Or, make a spinach salad with beets.

    linguine with spinach and sun-dried tomato cream sauce on a plate

    How to cook linguine al dente

    • To cook pasta al dente, cook linguine in salted boiling water about 2 minutes less than indicated on the package instructions.   I cooked linguine for about 9 minutes in boiling water.

    Cooking Tips

    • Reserve some pasta water.  Use it to thin out the cream sauce if it gets too thick.
    • Make sure to season the creamy linguine sauce with just the right amount of salt.   That means you might have to add more salt than indicated in the recipe.  Salt really helps to bring out all the flavors!

    How to prepare the sauce for linguine - step-by-step

    1) Cook chopped sun-dried tomatoes and minced garlic with olive oil on medium heat, for about 30 seconds.

    cooking garlic and sun-dried tomatoes in olive oil in a skillet

    2) Add 1 cup of half-and-half, paprika, and ¼ teaspoon of salt.  Bring to boil and reduce to simmer.

    adding half-and-half to sun-dried tomatoes and garlic and olive oil in a skillet

    3) Add shredded Parmesan cheese.  Stir for a couple of minutes until the cheese melts.

    adding shredded Parmesan cheese to the sun-dried tomato sauce in a skillet

    4) Add spinach.

    adding spinach to the sun-dried tomato sauce in the skillet

    5) Keep stirring on medium heat until the spinach wilts, about 1 minute.

    wilted spinach in sun-dried tomato sauce in a skillet

    6) Add cooked and drained linguine to the sauce.   Stir well. Taste the linguine, and season with more salt, if needed.

    adding linguine to the skillet with sun-dried tomato sauce and spinach

    Other pasta recipes

    Below are other meatless pasta sauce recipes that will go great with linguine.  What's beautiful about these recipes is that you can easily add protein.  Add grilled chicken, pan-seared scallops or seared shrimp.

    • Creamy Spinach Mushroom Pasta with Caramelized Onions
    • Sun-Dried Tomato Mushroom Pasta
    • Four Cheese Garlic White Cream Pasta Sauce
    linguine with spinach and sun-dried tomato cream sauce
    4.88 from 183 votes

    Linguine with spinach and sun-dried tomato cream sauce

    Linguine with spinach and sun-dried tomato cream sauce takes only 30 minutes to make! This simple Italian pasta requires only ingredients!  This creamy linguine is a perfect weeknight dinner!  Serve it as-is or with grilled chicken or seafood.
    Print Recipe Pin Recipe
    Prep Time 10 mins
    Cook Time 20 mins
    Total Time 30 mins
    Course Main Course
    Cuisine Italian
    Servings 4 people
    Calories per serving 424 kcal
    Author: Julia

    Ingredients

    • 8 oz linguine
    • ⅓ cup sun-dried tomatoes , chopped
    • 3 cloves garlic , minced
    • 1 cup half-and-half
    • 1 cup Parmesan cheese , shredded
    • ¼ teaspoon paprika
    • ¼ teaspoon salt
    • 6 oz spinach
    • 5 basil leaves fresh, finely chopped

    Instructions 

    • Cook linguine according to package instructions.  Drain.
    • Heat 1 tablespoon of olive oil in a large skillet on medium heat.
    • Add chopped sun-dried tomatoes and minced garlic.  Cook on medium heat for about 30 seconds, constantly stirring.
    • Add 1 cup of half-and-half, paprika, and ¼ teaspoon of salt.  Bring to boil and reduce to simmer.
    • Add ½ cup of shredded Parmesan cheese (half of what the recipe calls for).  Stir for about 30 seconds or longer until the cheese melts.  If the sauce is too thin, gradually add more cheese.  Keep stirring around all of the skillet for a couple of minutes.
    • Note: if the sauce gets too thick, add more half-and-half.
    • Add spinach.  Keep stirring on medium heat until the spinach wilts, about 1 minute.
    • Add cooked and drained linguine to the sauce.   Stir well.
    • Taste the linguine and add more salt, if needed.  Top with finely chopped fresh basil leaves.

    Notes

    What is half-and-half? To substitute for 1 cup of half-and-half, do this: combine ½ cup of whole milk with ½ cup of heavy cream.

    Nutrition

    Nutrition Information
    Linguine with spinach and sun-dried tomato cream sauce
    Amount per Serving
    Calories
    424
    % Daily Value*
    Fat
     
    14
    g
    22
    %
    Saturated Fat
     
    8
    g
    50
    %
    Cholesterol
     
    39
    mg
    13
    %
    Sodium
     
    630
    mg
    27
    %
    Potassium
     
    788
    mg
    23
    %
    Carbohydrates
     
    53
    g
    18
    %
    Fiber
     
    3
    g
    13
    %
    Sugar
     
    5
    g
    6
    %
    Protein
     
    20
    g
    40
    %
    Vitamin A
     
    4565
    IU
    91
    %
    Vitamin C
     
    16.8
    mg
    20
    %
    Calcium
     
    428
    mg
    43
    %
    Iron
     
    2.9
    mg
    16
    %
    * Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.

    The nutritional information on this website is only an estimate and is provided for convenience and as a courtesy only. The accuracy of the nutritional information for any recipe on this site is not guaranteed. It should not be used as a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.

    Keyword linguine, linguine sauce
    Tried this recipe?Be sure to leave a comment and provide a Star Rating below - I love your feedback and try to respond to every comment!
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    Reader Interactions

    Comments

    1. D

      June 29, 2022 at 9:18 pm

      Thank you really nice &easy

      Reply
    2. Suz

      June 27, 2022 at 1:25 am

      I want to try this, but don't know if I should use dry sun-dried tomatoes, or the ones that come packed in olive oil. Please let me know. Thanks so much

      Reply
    3. Sharie

      June 14, 2022 at 9:28 pm

      This is a go to when we feel like having a good pasta meal. My husband and I love it!!!

      Reply
    4. Ashley

      May 29, 2022 at 12:52 pm

      Easy and delicious. I love garlic so I added more to my dish. Will definitely be making it again!

      Reply
    5. Liza

      April 02, 2022 at 8:25 pm

      Lovely! And there are so many ways it can be “tweaked” to suit individual tastes/occasions. I’m thinking... seafood! Shrimp, specifically. Every year, we take a condo on the Texas Gulf Coast for 2 or 3 weeks; we get fresh shrimp off the SS Pollyanna and now I have a new recipe to add to my repertoire - super-easy and so delish with a fresh salad and a crusty baguette to sop up this wonderful sauce!

      Reply
      • Julia

        April 24, 2022 at 8:54 pm

        Liza, I am so flattered by your comment! 🙂 I couldn't agree more - this will be delicious with seafood, especially shrimp. Thank you for stopping by and sharing such a positive and uplifting comment - comments like that make my day and make me want to do more recipes! 🙂

        Reply
        • Sarah Owens

          May 23, 2022 at 9:27 pm

          This has been my favorite pasta recipe for years-- my kids love it, they ask for it specifically, and any time I bring it to a potluck it's a big hit

          Reply
    6. Fidelia

      February 10, 2022 at 3:34 pm

      What is half and half!

      Reply
      • Julia

        February 11, 2022 at 6:56 pm

        Half-and-half is half milk + half cream. For example, if you don't have 1 cup of half-and-half, you can use 1/2 cup of regular milk + 1/2 cup of heavy cream (heavy cream usually has about 36%-40% fat content) instead.

        Reply
      • Cheryl

        March 07, 2022 at 10:24 am

        This is easy but is so delish...give it a try I feel you will be happy you did. Making it tonight.

        Reply
        • Julia

          March 22, 2022 at 12:07 am

          Cheryl, thank you for your kind words. 🙂 Glad you enjoy this recipe!

          Reply
    7. J

      January 19, 2022 at 10:44 am

      Hey can I make this sauce ahead of time and save it

      Reply
      • Julia

        February 11, 2022 at 10:00 pm

        I do not recommend making a cream-based sauce like this ahead of time as it can be difficult to reheat (it will lose its texture).

        Reply
      • Diane

        March 04, 2022 at 10:48 pm

        This recipe was just delicious and so unbelievably easy to make and very company worthy as a main dish as well. Just add a beautiful fresh salad and some fresh bread. So beyond incredible made and served with Shrimp but just as worthy made with chicken. Try and enjoy. You won't regret it!

        Reply
        • Julia

          March 22, 2022 at 12:23 am

          Wow! Your comment made my day! Diane, thank you so much for the 5-star review and such an enthusiastic and uplifting comment - I really appreciate it! 🙂

          Reply
    8. Deanne

      January 14, 2022 at 10:31 pm

      This was delicious, it filled four people. I made my breaded chicken breasts and sliced them into the centre of the linguine on each plate. I added 4 (16 in total) cherry tomatoes cut in half around the edges of each plate and finished them off with fresh basil leaves. The dish looked restaurant quality, stunning and delicious. Will definitely make this again.

      Reply
      • Julia

        February 11, 2022 at 10:15 pm

        Deanne, I just love love your presentation of this dish - I can picture it clearly in my head! Thank you for taking the time to share such a thoughtful and detailed comment and the 5-star review - I really appreciate it!!

        Reply
    9. Svenska

      January 07, 2022 at 6:43 pm

      Hubby said it was even better the next day.

      Reply
      • Julia

        February 11, 2022 at 11:02 pm

        Glad the recipe was enjoyed and that it tastes good the next day! 🙂

        Reply
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    Hi, I'm Julia! / Welcome to my recipe blog where I share easy-to-make weeknight dinners and other recipes using simple ingredients!

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