This quick and easy Baked Feta and Tomato Pasta With Spinach is rich, creamy, and full of flavor. Made with just a few simple ingredients, it's a delicious meatless meal that's ready to enjoy in less than an hour!
It's my favorite way to make the baked feta pasta that went viral on TikTok a few years back. The combination of roasted tomatoes, olive oil, garlic, basil, spinach, and pasta in a sauce made with salty, tangy feta cheese is just so incredibly good.
And the oven does most of the work for you. Boil up some pasta in the meantime and then mix everything together for one winner of a dinner!
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According to my research, the original version of this recipe was published on the Finnish blog Lainahoyhenissa in 2018. That was followed by adaptations on the Finnish blog Liemessa and the American blog Grilled Cheese Social in 2019. From there, it went crazy on social media.
Of course, I had to try it to see what the fuss was about...and, oh yeah, it was totally worth all the hype!
I did eventually make a few minor changes. I only use half of a pound of pasta instead of a whole pound. I find this to be plenty to serve 4 people, and it makes the dish nice and saucy with lots of tomatoes to go around.
I also felt that it needed something green, so I added some fresh baby spinach for color and some extra veggie value. It wilts down beautifully into the sauce in seconds, so there's no need to cook it first.
This has been in our dinner rotation for quite a while, and I can't believe that I am only now getting around to posting it. Better late than never, right?
I think it's a great time to share it because it's tomato season! If you're growing grape or cherry tomatoes, this is a perfect way to use some of them up...and those homegrown tomatoes will take this already yummy dish over the top!
Ingredients You Need
Note: Ingredient amounts are in the recipe card at the bottom of the post.
- Grape tomatoes (or cherry tomatoes)
- Olive oil (I use and recommend extra-virgin as it has the best flavor; regular or light olive oil can also be used)
- Crushed red pepper flakes (for a little spicy heat; optional)
- Salt (I use kosher salt)
- Black pepper (freshly-cracked is best)
- Feta cheese (you'll need a block of full-fat/whole milk feta; don't substitute crumbled feta or low-fat feta)
- Gemelli pasta (or any shorter-cut pasta)
- Fresh garlic (minced)
- Fresh basil
- Fresh baby spinach
How To Make Baked Feta and Tomato Pasta With Spinach
Note: This is just a brief overview of the steps. For the full printable recipe with ingredient amounts and detailed instructions, please go to the recipe card at the bottom of the post.
Preheat the oven to 400°F.
Place the tomatoes, olive oil, crushed red pepper flakes, salt and pepper in a 9x13-inch baking dish; toss to combine.
Put the block of feta cheese in the middle of the tomatoes; turn to coat it lightly with some of the oil and seasonings. Bake for 35 minutes or until the tomatoes have burst and shriveled and the feta has softened.
Meanwhile, cook the pasta in boiling salted water to al dente. Save ½ cup of the pasta cooking water and then drain the pasta.
As soon as you remove the tomatoes and feta cheese from the oven, add the minced garlic and fresh basil.
Stir everything together until the cheese and oil create a smooth and creamy sauce. Leave the tomatoes intact as much as possible.
Add the cooked pasta and the fresh baby spinach.
Toss until the spinach is wilted and everything is combined and evenly coated with the sauce, adding in as much of the reserved pasta water as is needed to thin out the sauce and create a creamy consistency.
Serve immediately and enjoy!
Recipe Tips
- Be sure to use a block of full-fat/whole milk feta cheese. Crumbled feta is too dry, and it may have anti-caking agents that can prevent it from melting and incorporating into the sauce well. Low-fat or reduced-fat feta also may not melt as well.
- After baking in the oven, the block of feta won't actually look melted. But once you add the garlic and basil and start stirring everything together, you will see that it is actually melted very well.
- Add the garlic and basil as soon as the tomatoes and feta come out of the oven. You want the heat to cook the garlic just a little bit to take away that raw bite.
- Cook the pasta to al dente. It will continue cooking a little more when added to the hot sauce, and you don't want it to end up overcooked and mushy.
- I prefer to keep the tomatoes as intact as possible when making the sauce (I love biting into one!). You can crush them, if you'd rather, using a fork or a potato masher.
- I don't remove the stems from the baby spinach, as they are usually quite tender. You can remove them if you'd like.
- This recipe is written to make 4 main-dish servings, but you could also serve it in smaller portions as a side dish.
Substitutions & Variations
- Almost any kind of pasta can be used for this dish. I prefer a shorter-cut pasta like the gemelli. Other good options would be bowties, rigatoni, penne, rotini, and cavatappi. You can also use longer pasta like bucatini, fettuccini, linguine, or spaghetti if that is your preference.
- You can add other herbs (fresh or dried), such as thyme, rosemary, oregano, or an Italian seasoning blend. If using dried herbs, add them with the tomatoes before baking. If using fresh, add them after baking.
- If you want even more veggies, you could try adding some chopped or sliced bell peppers, onions or mushrooms in with tomatoes before baking.
- For some protein, you could add some cooked chicken or shrimp at the end when you add the pasta and spinach.
Storing Leftovers & Reheating
- Store leftovers, once cooled, in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 3 to 4 days.
- I don't recommend freezing this dish (the tomatoes can make it watery, and the feta can get grainy)
- The best way to reheat leftovers is in a skillet on the stove over low to medium-low heat, stirring often, just until it is heated through. Because the pasta will have soaked up some of the sauce in the refrigerator, you may need to add a little bit of water to loosen things up.
- You could also reheat it in the microwave in 60-second intervals, stirring between each one, just until it is heated through.
Serving Suggestions
This dish goes great with the traditional pasta sides: a green salad and/or bread (my favorite is either homemade garlic bread or homemade Italian bread).
You can also sprinkle each serving with some freshly grated parmesan cheese and extra fresh basil. Even though the sauce is plenty cheesy, I will admit that I do love adding some parmesan too.
I hope you try this Baked Feta and Tomato Pasta With Spinach recipe and love it as much as I do. Thanks for visiting today!
More Pasta Recipes To Try
Be sure to check out my Pasta and Noodles Recipes page for even more ideas.
If you make this recipe, I'd love to know how it went. Please leave a star rating and comment below. Thanks!
📋Recipe
Baked Feta and Tomato Pasta With Spinach
Ingredients
- 2 pints grape or cherry tomatoes, about 1½ pounds
- ½ cup extra-virgin olive oil
- ¼ teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes, or to taste (optional)
- ¼ teaspoon salt, or to taste (I use kosher salt)
- ¼ teaspoon freshly cracked black pepper, or to taste
- 1 (8-ounce) block feta cheese, full-fat/whole milk feta; drained of any brine in the packaging
- 8 ounces gemelli pasta
- 4 cloves fresh garlic, minced
- ¼ cup roughly chopped or torn fresh basil
- 4 ounces baby spinach, about 4 cups
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 400°F.
- Place the tomatoes, olive oil, crushed red pepper flakes (if using), salt and pepper in a 9x13-inch baking dish; toss to combine.
- Put the block of feta cheese in the middle of the tomatoes, turning to coat it lightly with some of the oil and seasonings.
- Bake for 35 minutes or until the tomatoes have burst and shriveled and the feta has softened (note that the feta won't actually look melted at this point, but it will be very soft). It is okay if the cheese gets just slightly golden on top, but keep an eye on it, because you don't want it to burn.
- While the tomatoes and cheese are in the oven, cook the pasta in boiling salted water to al dente according to the package instructions. Reserve ½ cup of the pasta cooking water (to be used in the sauce later), and then drain the pasta and set it aside.You want to cook the pasta to al dente because it will continue cooking just a bit more once you add it to the hot sauce, and you don't want it to become overcooked and mushy.
- When the tomatoes and cheese have finished cooking, remove the baking dish from the oven and immediately add the garlic and basil. Gently stir everything together right in the baking dish until the melted feta and olive oil create a smooth and creamy sauce. Try to leave the tomatoes intact as much as possible.I prefer the whole tomatoes, but if you'd rather them to be in smaller pieces, you can crush/mash them with a masher or a fork. Depending on the type of feta cheese you use, you may end up with some small bits of feta in the creamy sauce, and that's perfectly fine. Also, if some of the olive oil isn't completely incorporated into the sauce at this point, that's also fine. It will all come together nicely in the next step.
- Add the cooked pasta and the spinach to the baking dish; toss until the spinach is wilted and everything is combined and evenly coated in the sauce. If needed, add some of the reserved pasta cooking water, a little bit at a time, to loosen up the sauce and achieve a creamy consistency (you may not need any or all of the water). Taste and add more salt and pepper, if needed.
- Serve immediately and enjoy!
Notes
- Be sure to use a block of full-fat/whole milk feta cheese. Crumbled feta is too dry, and it may have anti-caking agents that can prevent it from melting and incorporating into the sauce well. Low-fat or reduced-fat feta also may not melt as well.
- Regular or light olive oil can also be used, but extra-virgin olive oil will give you the best flavor.
- Any shorter-cut pasta can be used instead of gemelli, such as bowties, rigatoni, penne, rotini, and cavatappi. You can also use longer pasta like bucatini, fettuccini, linguine, or spaghetti if you prefer.
- Although this recipe is written as a main dish, you could also serve it in smaller portions as a side dish.
- Please refer to the post for additional tips, step-by-step photos, and information on substitutions/variations, storing leftovers and reheating, and serving suggestions.
Mary says
Made this for our dinner, good for a no meat dinner. With our left overs I will add cooked sausage links , this will make my husband happy.
Michelle says
Thanks, Mary! So glad you enjoyed it, and adding some sausage to your leftovers sounds delish!