*My affiliate links are used in this post. However this does not influence or change my opinion. Thanks for using them and helping support my family and my blog!*
Skip the long waits at restaurants this weekend and make Creamy Garlic Spinach Chicken Pasta meal for your Valentine! This easy, healthy dinner recipe will melt their heart!!
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I don’t know about you, but there isn’t much more frustrating to me than having a long wait at a restaurant! Maybe it is because I am typically disappointed by restaurants and wish that I would have just made something of my own at home. I guess that is the food blogger in me 😉
When it comes to holidays, especially Valentine’s Day and Mother’s Day, it is that much worse!! I have first-hand knowledge of the long hours, rude people and overall frustration that restaurant employees go through during these holidays (since hubby runs one), so I just can’t bring myself to go to a restaurant during those times!! Besides the fact that he is working crazy long hours every Valentine’s and Mother’s Day!!
Well if you are anything like me and would rather enjoy your Valentine’s Day at home with a yummy meal that will taste like it was made in a restaurant without actually having to go to one, give my Creamy Garlic Spinach Chicken Pasta at try!!
Full disclosure, my Creamy Garlic Spinach Chicken Pasta is a bit more indulgent that most recipes that you will find on my blog, but it is a special day and you and your Valentine deserve it!! It is still sooooo much better for you than most anything you are going to get in a restaurant 😉
My Creamy Garlic Spinach Chicken Pasta starts with this new whole wheat pasta that I found with quinoa, amaranth, millet, sorghum and teff that I wanted to try out (uber healthy and yummy): http://amzn.to/1SKmR0b. Then you add lean boneless skinless chicken breasts, onion, garlic, lots of fresh spinach (all nice and healthy, right?). Then the healthy train comes to a screeching halt!! To make this pasta dish nice and creamy, all of those healthy ingredients are swimming in a sauce made with garlic herb cream cheese 😛 Top it off with some yummy parmesan cheese and crushed red pepper flakes (if you like…totally optional)!!
It’s all in moderation, right? That works for me!!! I hope you and your Valentine enjoy my Creamy Garlic Spinach Chicken Pasta as much as we did 😆 Added bonus…this recipe actually makes enough for 6 people, so you will definitely have leftovers!!! Do you love leftovers as much as I do? 😀
Here is your recipe for Creamy Garlic Spinach Chicken Pasta:
- 12 oz. (1 box) of whole wheat penne pasta
- 10 oz. fresh spinach, coarsely chopped
- 1 tbsp. extra virgin olive oil
- 1 lb. boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cut into bite-size pieces
- 1 large, yellow onion, chopped
- 3-4 cloves garlic, minced or pressed
- ½ cup garlic and herb cream cheese
- ⅓ cup grated parmesan cheese
- 1 tsp. crushed red pepper flake, more or less depending on your preference
- sea salt and fresh cracked pepper, to taste.
- Cook pasta according to package directions, reserving one cup of starching cooking water. Drain and return to hot pot, add chopped spinach, cover and set aside to let spinach wilt.
- Heat olive oil over medium-high heat in a large skillet.
- Once hot, add chicken to the skillet and sauté for approximately 5 minutes, or until chicken is cooked through.
- Add onion and garlic to the pan and saute for 2-3 minutes or until the onion has softened and beginning to turn translucent.
- Add cream cheese and reserved cooking water to chicken. Stir to combine and melt cream cheese.
- Add chicken/cream cheese mixture to pot with pasta and spinach. Add parmesan, crushed red pepper (if using), salt and pepper. Stir to combine.
- Serve with additional parmesan cheese and red pepper flakes for garnish.
- A simple green salad and warm whole wheat bread would be lovely with this pasta!!
Here is your nutrition label for Creamy Garlic Spinach Chicken Pasta:
Here are items I recommend for Creamy Garlic Spinach Chicken Pasta:
So tell me, how are you spending your Valentine’s Day? Did you love this recipe? Pin it and save it for later 🙂
*My affiliate links are used in this post. However this does not influence or change my opinion. Thanks for using them and helping support my family and my blog!*
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That looks like it would melt in my mouth just from the picture. I love creamy garlic spinach anything it’s my husband’s birthday today so I might make a for him today.
You had me at garlic! This sounds super yum! I can’t wait to make this.
That looks delicious! I’ve always loved a creamy pasta dish, especially when there’s garlic involved. Yummo!
I love indulgent and this looks amazing!! I can’t tell you how many times my husband and I tried to go to a fancy restaurant on Valentines day and ended up just leaving and cooking at home because of the crowds and rude people. printed the recipe for later! Thanks 🙂
Oh my gosh this looks so delicious!!!! I love that we can sneak in a green leaf veggie too!!
I’d love to try this recipe, pasta is one of my favorites because you can do so much with it. Thanks for this one!
Your pictures are really fantastic! I would totally make this at home, but I would use a non-dairy creamer, or soy based cream cheese (I keep kosher).
This recipe sounds really good! I’ll have to give it a try sometime. I love pasta dishes a bit more than I should and this one looks like a sure winner.
Oh wow, this would be the perfect dinner for us. It’s such a pretty meal! I totally have to try this out.
This looks absolutely divine! Add some homemade garlic bread and a side salad—heaven! I can’t wait to try this one out! Thank you for sharing!
Just the title makes me want to try this. My mama used to prepare spinach chicken pasta.
This sounds so good. I agree with eating things in moderation. I love eating alredo. I usually use the jar stuff but it’s healthier than eating out.
MMMMMM! I could DIVE into this! I love creamy pasta, and can’t get enough garlic. Together, they make the perfect combination!
I have been such a pasta fiend lately and I love anything with garlic so this looks like the perfect meal for me!! Great post!!
These Chicken Pasta looks delicious. These is really a perfect meal to shared with the whole family
That looks so creamy and delicious. I love easy recipes like this. I can’t wait to make this for my family.
Wow that is so creamy. I would love to make this right now
Yummy! This would be perfect for Valentines Day Dinner! I totally love this Creamy Garlic Spinach Chicken Pasta.
I am SO saving/printing this so I can have it for dinner next week! This looks soooo good! I love spinach too so its even better! Yum! Happy weekend!
This looks delicious. I miss having spinach in pasta. I wil pick up some when I go grocery shopping this weekend.
I make a vegan version of this with coconut cream, and of course minus the chicken! I love spinach and I love incorporating it into pasta recipes!
This looks almost too beautiful to eat! I love any pasta dish, definitely want a bowl now
This recipe looks so delicious and easy to make. This Valentine’s Day i am treating myself to a day at the spa.
This looks so incredible! I love anything with garlic. I will have to try this for dinner.
My mouth is drooling! This recipe looks delicious!
Omg this looks absolutely delicious!!! So pinning so I can give your recipe a try myself. Yummy!
This looks so yummy! I make something similar all of the time with peas instead of spinach. So good!
yummy! will ad this recipe to weekly pasta! its always a must in my house
I made this and I love it. I left out the onions because my family won’t eat them. I added the garlic in with the chicken while it cooked. It is delicious!
I am so glad that you and your family enjoyed this!! So happy you were able to modify it to fit your family’s taste 🙂 Thanks for letting me know!!
I made this tonight but got to the end of the recipe instructions and realized I never added the garlic! I don’t believe it’s anywhere except the ingredients list so I skipped over it. Added at the end! You may want to do an edit 🙂 it’s very good!!
Thank you so much Megan!! You are absolutely right, I did forget the garlic in the instructions…so sorry! I have updated the recipe to include the garlic now, duh;) I am so glad you enjoyed it!!
About how big is the serving size for your nutrition facts? Thanks!
Hi Lauren! Thanks for the note! It would be about 1 1/3 cups for a serving.
I don’t have garlic and herb cream cheese how can I make this with regular?
Hi Nicole, You could use regular cream cheese and then add in some fresh garlic and herbs of your choice 🙂 Enjoy!!
Can this be done as gluten free?
You could definitely use gluten free pasta. I don’t think that the cream cheese has gluten in it, but I am not sure. You might need to double check.