Spinach Chive Ricotta Pasta Food

SPINACH RICOTTA CANNELLONI

Steps:

• Heat oil in a large skillet over medium high heat. Add garlic and onion, cook for 2 - 3 minutes until translucent. Add tomato, water, salt and pepper.
• Stir, reduce heat to medium, simmer for 5 minutes. Optional: add 1/2 cup water and blend sauce until smooth (I do this for guests!).
• Stir through basil or dried herbs. Set aside.
• Place spinach in a colander and press out most of the liquid (don't need to thoroughly squeeze dry).
• Place Spinach in bowl with remaining Filling ingredients. Mix, taste, adjust salt and pepper to taste (different cheeses have different saltiness).
• Preheat oven to 180C/350F.
• Choose a baking pan which will comfortably fit about 20 cannelloni - mine is 21 x 26 cm / 8.5 x 10.5".
• Spread a bit of Sauce on the base.
• Transfer Filling to a piping bag with a large nozzle (that fits in the tubes), or use a strong ziplock bag. Or do this step using a knife (it's a bit tedious though!).
• Pipe the filling into the tubes. Place in baking dish.
• Pour over remaining Sauce, covering all the tubes. Cover with foil, then bake for 25 minutes.
• Remove foil, scatter over cheese. Return to oven for 10 minutes until cheese is melted.
• Serve, garnished with extra basil if desired.

SPINACH & RICOTTA PASTA BAKE

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350F/180C.
• Pasta Sauce: Pour out about 1/4 cup of the passata (to make room to add flavourings). Add the remaining Pasta Sauce ingredients into the bottle, screw the lid on and give it a shake.
• Cook pasta for time per packet MINUS 1 minute.
• SCOOP OUT 1 mugful pasta cooking water, drain and set aside.
• Ricotta Mixture - Mix Ricotta Mixture ingredients in a very large bowl. Use a splash of pasta cooking water if needed to make it creamy.
• Add pasta and stir to combine. Transfer to a heatproof baking dish.
• Top with Pasta Sauce, top with cheese. Loosely cover with foil.
• Bake for 25 minutes, then remove the cover and bake for a further 10 minutes or until the cheese is melted and bubbly.
• Serve while hot and fresh!

SPINACH, CHIVE, RICOTTA PASTA - BETHENNY FRANKEL

Steps:

• Bring pot of salted water to boil and cook pasta according to directions. Meanwhile, heat oil in large nonstick pan over medium high heat and add spinach, then garlic. Saute until wilted and add salt and pepper. Turn off heat.
• When pasta is cooked, add to spinach with a 1/4 cup of pasta water. Add remaining ingredients (except chives and pine nuts) and toss well.
• Season with salt and pepper to taste. Top with fresh chives, pinenuts and more grated parmesan.

RICOTTA PASTA WITH FRESH SPINACH

Steps:

• Cook the pasta according to package directions and drain, reserving 1/2 cup of the hot pasta cooking water. Transfer the pasta to a serving container, toss with 1 1/2 tablespoons of the margarine, and cover.
• In a mixing bowl, combine the ricotta with the reserved pasta cooking water and stir until well blended. Stir into the pasta along with the Parmesan, and season with salt and pepper.
• Cover and steam the spinach using just the water clinging to the leaves in the same pot used to cook the pasta. This should take only a minute or two. Drain the spinach well and chop coarsely. Transfer to a small serving bowl and toss with the remaining 1/2 tablespoon margarine. Serve at once, topping each serving with some of the steamed spinach.
• Calories: 276
• Total Fat: 12g
• Protein: 15g
• Carbohydrate: 25g
• Cholesterol: 24mg
• Sodium: 322mg

CREAMY CHIVE PASTA WITH LEMON

Steps:

• Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Add the pasta and cook according to package instructions until al dente. Reserve 1 cup pasta cooking water, then drain the pasta.
• In the same pot, make the sauce: Stir together the crème fraîche, 1/2 cup reserved pasta water, Parmesan, lemon zest and juice, and a pinch of salt and pepper. Add the pasta, return to medium heat, and cook, tossing vigorously, until the noodles are well coated, 1 to 2 minutes. Add more pasta water as needed to gloss the noodles.
• Add the chives and stir until evenly distributed and slightly wilted. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Eat with more grated Parmesan and black pepper on top.