Last updated on February 19, 2020 by Liza Hawkins
Spinach dip pasta has all the creamy, garlic-y, Parmesan goodness you love about the spinach dip appetizer!
Spinach dip is one of my favorite appetizers to order out. It’s creamy and usually loaded with Parmesan, which — in my book — you can’t have enough of.
The best spinach dips are served bubbling at the table, golden and crusty on top, and perfect for dipping fresh and warm tortilla chips. Mmm…
The other night I perused my fridge to figure out what to make for dinner.
This is a regular occurrence over here at mealtime.
I’ve always been less “meal planner” and more “Chopped” when it comes to making dinner since I usually focus my grocery shopping hauls around what’s on sale instead of the recipes I want to make each week.
On this night, I had a fresh tub of shredded parmesan, a bag of frozen spinach, milk, mushrooms, mozzarella, a little beef stock and a half-used box of elbow macaroni.
The answer for “What to make?” seemed simple to me!
In fact, the only thing that could’ve made this recipe better might be artichokes … as you might imagine.
Next time I’ll do a little planning and make sure to have some on hand. Yum!
Spinach Dip Pasta
Spinach dip pasta has all the creamy, garlic-y, parmesan, goodness you love about a spinach dip appetizer!
Ingredients
- 8-ounces dried elbow macaroni
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 2 tablespoons butter
- 4 mushrooms, diced
- 1 clove garlic, minced
- 4 green onions, diced
- 1 cup frozen spinach
- 1/8 cup all-purpose flour
- 1/2 cup beef broth
- 1 1/2 cups whole milk
- 2 tablespoons + 1 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 teaspoon black pepper
- 1/2 teaspoon onion powder
- 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 cup shredded Parmesan
- 1 cup shredded mozzarella
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 375°F. Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Add 2 tablespoons of salt, followed by the macaroni and let it boil it for 8 minutes. Drain it, pour it back into the pot, and then set it aside.
- Meanwhile, set a large skillet to preheat over medium heat with the olive oil and butter. Once the butter's melted, add the mushrooms, stirring occasionally until they start to brown. Add the garlic and the whites of the green onions, and continue to saute everything for another minute. Add the spinach (if it's still frozen, that's okay), and stir off and on until the spinach is warmed through.
- Sprinkle the flour over the mushroom mixture, and stir to coat everything—it will be a thick and pasty. Let it cook for a minute, then pour the broth in all at once, taking care to scrape any little bits off the bottom of the pan. Whisk in the milk, 1 teaspoon of salt, pepper, onion powder, and garlic powder, and continue whisking until the mixture starts to bubble. Remove it from heat, and stir in the parmesan cheese.
- Fold the sauce and the remaining green onions into the macaroni, stirring until it's well-coated. Transfer the pasta mixture to a 2-1/2 quart baking dish, top with the mozzarella, and then bake it (uncovered) for 20 minutes—or until it's all bubbly and the edges are golden.
- Let the spinach dip pasta rest for 10 minutes before serving.
Notes
It's fine to substitute fresh baby spinach or chopped fresh regular spinach for the frozen spinach.
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Nutrition Information:
Yield:
6Serving Size:
1Amount Per Serving: Calories: 299Total Fat: 18gSaturated Fat: 8gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 8gCholesterol: 35mgSodium: 841mgCarbohydrates: 21gFiber: 2gSugar: 4gProtein: 15g
