This is my give-me-a-break-from-candy-canes dinner.
My no-more-cookies-and-it’s-only-the-second-week-of-December dinner.
The it’s-the-holiday-season-so-I’m-on-a-dinner-making-strike-until-January dinner.
The truth is that I need a dinner intervention. Big time.
The last few weeks my dinner ideas have been totally shot. My brain turns into a black hole after mid-afternoon—empty and uninspired—so I found myself digging through a thesaurus for dinner words. I even predicted this slump and tried to plan ahead, but it arrived anyway.
It doesn’t matter that I have an arsenal of nearly a thousand recipes tucked away online. After 3PM my dinner brain simply stops working. Sometimes I can’t even be bothered to microwave anything properly. The holidays put me in a holidaze: I nibble on cheese, kale chips and peanuts while staring at my computer and call it dinner.
I can practically hear 2003 calling, asking for our old college dinners back.
Before I flood you with more party snacks, I made an easy dinner. When I shot these photos it was technically breakfast, which feels like half the battle, but I won’t overthink that.
Also, I may have gotten hooked on House of Cards and watched for eight solid hours in one sitting. We ordered pizza and did nothing else. The result? Minimal energy for complicated cooking, which is precisely why this pasta is perfect.
This dish is one of the simplest things to come out of my kitchen lately and it’s ready in 30 minutes. It’s big on flavor but light on ingredients—most are probably already in your pantry or fridge. What makes it feel special is brown butter, tangy goat cheese, and some green vegetables to make it feel grown-up. Truly, necessities.
30 Minute Caramelized Shallot, Spinach and Goat Cheese Garlic Butter Pasta
2 to 4
30 mins
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Ingredients
- 1/2 pound pasta
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 2 shallots, sliced
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 2 teaspoons brown sugar
- 12 ounces fresh spinach
- 3 tablespoons unsalted butter
- 2 garlic cloves, minced
- 6 ounces goat cheese, crumbled
- a pinch of crushed red pepper flakes
Instructions
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Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil and cook the pasta according to package directions.
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While the water comes to a boil, heat a large skillet over low heat and add the olive oil. Add the sliced shallots and salt, stirring to coat. Cover and cook for about 10 minutes, stirring occasionally, until softened. Stir in the brown sugar and cook another 5 minutes. By this point the pasta should be cooking.
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Add the fresh spinach to the skillet with the shallots and toss. Stir continuously until the spinach wilts, about 5 minutes.
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Meanwhile, heat a small saucepan over medium heat and add the butter. Whisk constantly until the butter begins to brown and you see toasted bits form at the bottom. Remove from heat and whisk for 15 more seconds. Add the minced garlic to the brown butter and whisk for 30 seconds.
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Drain the pasta, then add it to the skillet with the spinach and shallots. Toss well, then pour in the garlic brown butter and toss again. Crumble the goat cheese into the pasta and stir to combine. Finish with a pinch of crushed red pepper flakes and serve immediately.
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Also, squiggly cute little pasta: making Mondays better since… now.