A quick and flavorful gluten-free pasta dish. Breaking the pasta before cooking it helps the pasta to absorb the sauce better and be easier to eat with a fork. To make this vegan, simply omit the cheese or replace with vegan parmesan cheese.
1 16oz.package brown rice pastabroken into quarters
4tablespoons+ 2 teaspoons olive oildivided
1 16oz.bag baby spinach
6clovesgarlicdiced
½lemonjuiced (or about 2 tablespoons)
1can garbanzo beansdrained and rinsed
½teaspoonred pepper flakes
¾teaspoonsalt
½cupshaved hard cheese or cheese blendparmesan, romano, and asiago
Instructions
Bring a large pot of heavily salted water to a boil and cook the pasta according to the package directions, stirring immediately after adding it to the water and every few minutes thereafter. Once the pasta is done, drain it in a colander and toss with 1-2 teaspoons olive oil.
A few minutes after the water starts boiling: heat 1 tablespoon of olive oil in a non-stick pan over medium to medium-high heat. Once shimmering, add half the baby spinach and saute, stirring frequently, until the spinach is about 50% wilted. Then remove to a medium size bowl.
Repeat step 2 with the second tablespoon of the olive and second part of spinach, but keep the spinach in the pan this time once 50% wilted.
Add the first part of spinach back in with the rest of the spinach and add in the garlic. Saute for 1-1.5 minutes, stirring constantly so the garlic doesn't burn, or until the garlic is fragrant and starting to turn translucent.
Add the lemon juice to the greens and stir until it's evenly distributed over the greens. Then add in the beans, red pepper, and salt. Stir until everything is well combined and bring the mixture to a simmer. Let simmer for 1-2 minutes, or until the lemon juice is almost entirely evaporated.
Add the drained pasta to the pot and reduce the heat to low. Toss the pasta with the greens until everything is thoroughly mixed together. Drizzle with last 2 tablespoons olive oil (if you have good olive oil you'd like to use, you can use it here, but it's ok if you use just a normal extra virgin olive oil) and top with grated cheese. Serve hot!
Notes
1. The pasta will keep covered in the fridge for 3-5 days. 2. Drizzle the pasta at the end with good olive oil if you have one on hand that you'd like to use, but a standard extra virgin olive oil will do just fine.