Pasta with Spinach, Chili, and Walnuts

Like so many other people, I’m always on the lookout for easy, fool-proof entertaining recipes this time of year. With all of the hustle and bustle surrounding the holidays, it seems like no matter how much I plan I still always find myself scrambling to pull things together at the last second!

This pasta with spinach, chili pepper, and toasted walnuts might just be the solution. It may seem (and taste!) fancy, but it doesn’t take any longer to make than plain old pasta with a jar of sauce. While the pasta cooks, you whip up a simple sauce with plain yogurt, spinach, and basil and toast some walnuts in chili oil. Once the pasta is done, just mix it all together and top it with some briny feta cheese. The flavors are really complex ­– it’s the kind of dish that tastes better and better the more you eat!

Your guests will never know that it took you less than 20 minutes to make and, since it doesn’t need to be served piping hot, it works equally as well for a sit-down and buffet style parties.

This week, #SundaySupper is being sponsored by one of my favorite products: Gourmet Garden! I’ve been using these herb pastes for years and they’re great – especially this time of year, when fresh herbs are hard to find (and crazy expensive.)

You use them just like you would use the fresh stuff (swap them for fresh herbs in at a one-to-one ratio), but they last a really long time in the refrigerator so you don’t need to stress our about having to buy a whole bunch of something when the recipe only calls for a little bit.

Before I discovered these, I think I spent like $10 a week on fresh herbs… and every week I’d end up throwing out at least half of them because I didn’t use them quickly enough. It was terrible! Now I always have a few tubes on hand and I’m ready to tackle whatever recipe idea comes to me.

For this recipe, I used three varieties: chunky garlic, chili pepper, and basil. The chunky garlic is one of my absolute favorites because it saves me the hassle of having to peel and mince the garlic myself, but it still tastes really fresh (unlike other pre-minced garlic that can taste a little funky after a while.) I also really love the ginger and lemongrass for the same reason… they make prepping a recipe so easy!

You can find them right by the fresh herbs in the produce section of the grocery store, and I highly recommend that you seek them out. You can also follow them on social media, where they’re always sharing fun ideas. They’re on facebook, twitter, pinterest, and instagram.