Penne with Spinach & Tomatoes
topped with Garlic Butter Breadcrumbs & Parmesan
- Wheat
- Milk
Raise your hand if you’re obsessed with all things pasta. (We've all raised our hands over here.) You’ll toss penne with spinach and juicy grape tomatoes in a creamy sauce. To top things off—in this case literally—there’s a shower of buttery, garlicky panko breadcrumbs. One bite in, you’ll realize your pasta obsession is completely legit and may find any number of reasons to whip up this delicious dish again and again!
Ingredients
4 ounce
Grape Tomatoes
¼ cup
Panko Breadcrumbs
(Contains: Wheat)
1 teaspoon
Garlic Powder
6 ounce
Penne Pasta
(Contains: Wheat)
1 unit
Veggie Stock Concentrate
4 tablespoon
Cream Cheese
(Contains: Milk)
5 ounce
Spinach
3 tablespoon
Parmesan Cheese
(Contains: Milk)
1 teaspoon
Chili Flakes
Not included in your delivery
Salt
Pepper
2 tablespoon
Butter
(Contains: Milk)
Nutrition Values
Utensils
Cooking Steps
• Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Wash and dry produce. • Halve tomatoes.
• Melt 1 TBSP butter (2 TBSP for 4 servings) in a large pan over medium-high heat. Add panko and cook, stirring, until golden and toasted, 2-3 minutes. • Stir in half the garlic powder (you’ll use the rest later) and cook until fragrant, 30 seconds. • Turn off heat; transfer to a plate and season with salt and pepper. Wipe out pan.
• Once water is boiling, add penne to pot. Cook, stirring occasionally, until al dente, 9-11 minutes. Reserve ¼ cup pasta cooking water. • Drain and set aside.
• While penne cooks, melt 1 TBSP butter (2 TBSP for 4 servings) in pan used for panko over medium-high heat. Add remaining garlic powder and cook until fragrant, 30 seconds. • Stir in 1⁄3 cup water (½ cup for 4), stock concentrate, and cream cheese. Bring to a simmer and cook, stirring, until combined and creamy, 2-3 minutes. Season with salt and pepper.
• Stir tomatoes and spinach into pan with sauce. Cook, stirring, until spinach is wilted and tomatoes are softened, 3-4 minutes.
• Stir drained penne into pan with sauce until thoroughly coated. (TIP: If needed, add a splash or two of reserved pasta cooking water until everything is coated in a creamy sauce.) Taste and season with salt and pepper. • Divide pasta between bowls and top with Parmesan. Sprinkle with as many garlic butter breadcrumbs as you like. Add a pinch of chili flakes to taste and serve.
Customer reviews
Review summary
Updated on Dec 2025- Flavor: Many enjoyed the dish, though some found it bland; adding extra herbs, garlic, or cheese boosted flavor 🍲.
- Ease of prep: Quick and easy to make, with clear instructions and simple steps for a satisfying meal.
- Suggestions: Consider adding protein like chicken or shrimp; some preferred more sauce or extra tomatoes for richness.
- Leftovers: Reheats well for most, though a few found the spinach texture less appealing when reheated.
- Texture: The crunchy panko breadcrumbs were a hit, adding a delightful texture contrast to the creamy pasta.
Reviews from our home cooks
Fresh roasted tomatoes give this dish a great flavor. The panko felt gritty in my husband's mouth, but I liked it with the garlic powder; I think fresh garlic sans panko would be a fine substitute in this recipe. Portions were huge. The only real negative was that the chicken wasn't fresh, but we really liked the recipe itself.
I loved adding spinach and tomatoes to a pasta dish - what a great idea! And so easy. However the overall taste was lacking in flavor. The sauce didn't really taste of anything.
We think it should have some lemon zest for even more punch! We also added some shrimp that we had in the freezer. A delicious pasta dish.
It was very good and maybe would be perfect when tomatoes are more in season. I'm thinking I may make a little extra panko crumbs and mix half in the tomatoes first next time. Panko or my homemade fried breadcrumbs.
Very pleasant flavors with the cream cheese, spinach, and tomatoes!
The garlic butter breadcrumbs were the icing on the cake!
This was a yummy dish...however, unfortunately, the spinach was "runny" and gooey so I could only salvage a little of it to use in the dish.
Even though I do not like cooked spinach, with the sauce it covered up the taste and it was good! Got my vegetable without really tasting it
For no meat in meal, the portion is very small yet delicious but needs more noodles and sauce for bigger portion plenty of tomatoes and spinach.
Added 1/2 portion of shrimp for a meat meal. Removed Panko breadcrumbs for a lower sodium dish.
