Bright, vibrant, fresh – this carbonara-inspired pea, pancetta and spinach pasta has it ALL. It’s packed with greens but still feels like a luxurious meal, perfect for busy weeknights or special occasions.
Peas and pancetta are a wonderful combination. You’ve got the salty flavor and crispy texture from the pancetta, paired with the sweet freshness of the peas and they provide a fabulous base for this lovely, vibrant pasta. It sings of spring to me.
Now, I know this is in NO way a traditional spaghetti carbonara, but it uses the same technique. Eggs combine with the rendered pancetta fat to make the vibrant sauce super silky and luxurious, and I promise there will be no scrambled eggs in sight if you follow my foolproof process. The key is to temper the sauce mixture with some of the pasta cooking water before adding it to the hot pan. This way, you’re reducing the risk of any potential egg scrambling and making your life a lot easier!
This is a fabulous recipe for a speedy weeknight meal, but it’s also special enough for entertaining, dinner parties or date nights. It’s quick, easy and looks so beautiful on the plate (that color!)
Ingredients
- Pancetta. Aka. cured pork belly. It’s a slightly more luxurious version of bacon and it’s GORGEOUS here. If you can’t find it, you can use streaky bacon instead. You want streaky bacon because you need the fat to help create that glossy sauce.
- Peas. Frozen garden peas are what I’m using for ease – you don’t even need to defrost them first.
- Pasta. You can use any pasta shape you like. I like a smaller shape with this sauce (I’m using orecchiette in the photos), but a longer shape, like spaghetti, linguine or even hand-rolled pici pasta would work well too.
- Spinach. Use baby leaf spinach if possible as it blitzes into a smooth sauce a little easier than larger leaves.
- Parmesan. Use Grada padano or pecorino instead if you like.
- Miso paste. I use this in my regular carbonara recipe too and I absolutely recommend giving it a go here. It adds a beautiful deep savory flavor that you just can’t replicate with salt alone. White miso paste is best as it’s a little milder. If you can’t find it, just leave it out.
How to make it
Add the spinach, basil, parmesan, miso paste, eggs and a very good grind of black pepper to a blender. Blitz until smooth and creamy. Cook your pasta according to packet instructions.
Cook your pancetta until lovely and crispy, then throw in the frozen peas and stir as they defrost. Add your cooked pasta and toss it through the pancetta and peas. Use a little of the pasta cooking water to temper the spinach/egg sauce (if you mix it with the sauce before adding it to the pasta, you’ll reduce any risk of scrambling the eggs in the hot pan).
With the heat off, pour the sauce into the pan and toss through the pasta. It will thicken up as you stir it and the eggs cook in the residual heat of the pan and the pasta itself. Once the sauce is lovely, thick and creamy (this will just take a few minutes), divide the pasta between plates, top with the mint, basil and chili flakes, then serve.
PRO TIP: For a looser sauce, just add a little more pasta cooking water and to help the sauce thicken, add more grated parmesan cheese.
Got a question?
Yes! You absolutely can.
You can – but it won’t be quite the same as when fresh. The pasta will continue to absorb the liquid in the sauce as it sits, which impacts the texture. Reheat it on the stovetop over low heat, or in the microwave. When you do, add a little more liquid to loosen up the sauce again.
Watch how to make it
Like this recipe? Try these easy pasta ideas next
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Creamy Pea, Pancetta and Spinach Pasta
- Total Time: 20 minutes
- Yield: 2 servings
Description
Bright, vibrant, fresh – this carbonara-inspired pea, pancetta and spinach pasta has it all. It’s packed with greens but still feels like a luxurious meal, perfect for busy weeknights or special occasions.
Ingredients
- 2oz/60g parmesan cheese, plus more to serve
- 2 eggs
- 1 tablespoon white miso paste
- 2 cups spinach leaves
- 1 cup basil leaves, plus more to serve
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- Black pepper
- 1 tablespoon lemon juice
- 2oz/60g pancetta, diced
- 1 cup frozen peas
- 8oz/225g dried pasta of your choice (I used orecchiette)
- A handful of mint leaves, chopped
- 2 teaspoons chili flakes
Instructions
- Make the sauce. Add the parmesan cheese, eggs, miso paste, spinach, basil, lemon juice, salt and a good grind of black pepper to a blender or food processor. Blitz until super smooth, then set aside.
- Cook your pasta. Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil, then add your pasta and cook according to packet instructions. You want the pasta to be JUST al dente (cooked, but still with a bit of a bite). PRO TIP: If you’re using fresh pasta, cook the pasta after you’ve cooked the pancetta and peas as it only takes a couple of minutes to cook, rather than dried pasta which takes about 8 – 10 minutes.
- Cook the pancetta and peas. Add the diced pancetta to a large,high-sided pan and set the heat to medium. Cook, stirring, until the pancetta is lovely and crispy. At this point, add the frozen peas and stir them through the pancetta as they defrost. Turn the heat off.
- Temper the spinach sauce. Drizzle about 1/4 cup of the pasta cooking water into your spinach sauce, mixing as you do. This is going to temper the sauce and help you ensure that the eggs in the sauce won’t scramble when they hit the hot pan.
- Add the pasta to the peas and pancetta. Once your pasta is cooked, turn the heat back on the pan with the peas and pancetta, until you can hear sizzling. At this point, turn the heat off, then add the cooked pasta (I use a slotted spoon to transfer the pasta directly into the pan from the cooking pot for ease). Toss the pasta through the pancetta and peas.
- Mix the pasta with the sauce. Pour in the spinach sauce and toss really well to combine it with the pasta. As you mix it, you’ll notice the sauce thicken as the eggs cook in the residual heat of the pan. If it’s not thickening, you can turn the heat on to the lowest setting and keep mixing the sauce through the pasta but be careful – keep mixing as if the pan gets too hot the sauce can split. Add a little more pasta water if you prefer a looser sauce, or add grated parmesan to thicken the sauce. Divide the pasta between plates, then top with the mint leaves, remaining basil, chili flakes and another sprinkling of parmesan.
Notes
INGREDIENT NOTES:ย If you can’t find pancetta, you can use streaky bacon instead. Try to use baby leaf spinach as it will blitz into the sauce more easily. While I adore using the miso paste (it gives you a lovely deep savory flavor that salt alone won’t), if you can’t find it you can leave it out.ย
STORAGE INSTRUCTIONS:ย The pasta is best eaten right after it’s cooked, but you can reheat it later if you like. My favorite way to reheat it is over low heat on the stovetop – add about 1/4 cup of water when you do to loosen the sauce up again. The pasta will continue to absorb the liquid as it sits, so you fo need to add a little more when you reheat it.
- Prep Time: 10
- Cook Time: 10
- Category: pasta
- Method: stove top
- Cuisine: italian
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 250g
- Calories: 818
- Sugar: 2.9g
- Sodium: 11287mg
- Fat: 32.7g
- Saturated Fat: 11.8g
- Unsaturated Fat: 20.9g
- Trans Fat: 0g
- Carbohydrates: 81.7g
- Fiber: 6.4g
- Protein: 53g
- Cholesterol: 498mg
This is really fabulous! I love what you did. The miso is a surprise!
Just wondering if you can blend the peas in with the spinach for those who don’t like the taste or texture of peas.
Yes you definitely could! You could also leave them out if you prefer x
Does tempering the eggs cook them for a pregnant woman
The eggs are cooked by the residual heat in the pan and pasta, so this is safe for pregnancy x
Great recipe! Used with stuffed handmade pasta and it was great. Added a small handful of pine nuts and blended some of the cooked peas into the blender mix. Didn’t have enough fresh basil so added more peas and spinach. Topped pasta with a goat cheese and herbed ricotta mix. It was great!