Macaroni in Spinach and Cream Sauce
Last afternoon I sat thinking about what can make with spinach since I had to consume it yesterday itself. I desperately wanted to prepare something different to avoid ending up preparing the usual spinach vegetable or curry or parathas, and so on. I had stocked macaroni last week , so suddenly this recipe struck my mind. I made it for lunch and everyone loved it. Another best part being, it took me less than 30 minutes to prepare the entire recipe. Try it out!
Ingredients:
1 1/2 cups macaroni or shell or any other pasta,
3 tbsp flour,
1 1/2 cups milk,
1/2 cup mild cheddar cheese; grated,
1/2 cup cream,
Salt and pepper to taste,
A pinch of dried thyme,
2-3 cloves of garlic; finely chopped,
1 small bunch of spinach leaves,
Olive oil,
Butter.
Method:
Cook the macaroni as per instructions given on its package. In a pan, add some olive oil, then add chopped garlic to it. Cook for a minute until it is fragrant and then add chopped spinach. Mix and cover and cook for 3-4 minutes. Season with some salt and thyme. Remove from flame and set aside.
In a saucepan, melt some butter and roast flour until fragrant. Then while whisking add milk and cook for a minute stirring continuously. Avoid or break any lumps*. Add cream and cheese to it and stir well. Season with salt and pepper. When sauce thickens, add cooked spinach and mix well. Then fold in the macaroni, stir and serve hot.
* To avoid lumps while preparing the sauce, let the flour cool down. Then add cold milk to it, mix well and then transfer to flame.
Hey, thats what i made yesterday and it taste DIVINE. However whts Thyme, never heard abt it b4?
Hi Tanmay,
I am glad you prepared the recipe and you liked it.
Thyme is an Italian herb. Herbs are an essential ingredient of Italian cuisine as spices are in Indian cuisine. Fresh Thyme leaves are available at some places, else dry thyme (and other herbs like Rosemary, Oregano, Basil, etc) are available in small bottles at all leading grocery marts. You can buy them and use in a variety of recipes, experiment with them. They add a delicious taste to your food.
I hope this was helpful to you.
Regards,
Minal
Hi, Made a bake yesterday with pasta, some salsa and some veg. Tasted great but I found the cheese had not melted well. I put shredded mozarella and a few slices of cheddar cheese because I was short. The cheddar had not melted well. What do u advise ? shd i avoid cheddar? or shd i have grated it fine.
Also if I have to reheat it will the texture spoil? Can I put cheese in the sauce itself?
really appreciate ur work on this website.
Thanks a lot
Hi Lakshmi,
Avoid using Mozzarella cheese in this recipe. Also Cheddar may take some time to melt. Thats why the recipe asks you to put cheese along with cream while preparing the sauce and cook until the mixture thickens. That much time and temperature should be enough.
But if you feel the cheese has not melted, you can add little milk to thin out the sauce and cook until the cheese melts. This should work.
Ideally avoid reheating pasta, but if you have to, do that in a microwave.
I am glad you like my recipes. Thanks and keep visiting.
Regards,
Minal