One-Pot Mushroom Spinach Pasta with White Wine

Looking for a quick and easy pasta dish that brings tons of fresh flavor? This Mushroom Spinach Pasta is citrusy and fragrant, with a lemon, white wine, and butter sauce.

Plus, it’s ready in less than 30 minutes and requires only one pot, making clean up a breeze! This easy meatless one pot pasta dish is just as easy to whip up and clean up as it is to scarf down!

As an environmental scientist, I am always trying to make eco-conscious food choices. One great way to improve your ecological footprint is by finding ways to enjoy more meatless meals.

Green tip: Industrial meat production has a huge impact on the environment, especially because of the amount of land it takes to sustain and its high amount of greenhouse gas emissions.

Mushroom Spinach Pasta Ingredients

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Here’s everything you need:

• Garlic. To bring lots of flavor to your white wine sauce.
• Mushrooms. For umami and a hearty texture in this meatless pasta dish.
• Olive oil, salt, and pepper. To cook the garlic and mushrooms in.
• Fettuccine or linguine pasta.
• Vegetable broth. You can buy it at the store or make your own vegetable broth.
• White wine. Pinot Grigio or Sauvignon Blanc is preferred, but any white wine that’s on the dryer side will work.
• Lemon. You’ll need both the zest and juice of one large lemon for this recipe.
• Spinach. For some freshness, color, and nutrients. I like to use fresh baby spinach in this recipe.
• Butter. Unsalted is best to allow you to have control over the salt content in your sauce.

Spinach Mushroom Pasta Tips and Tricks

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How to Prep Mushrooms for Pasta

Mushrooms will typically last 5-7 days in their original container when they are refrigerated.

To keep my mushrooms fresh longest, wet a paper towel (consider these bamboo ones for a more sustainable option!) and then ring it out, so it is damp. Then, place the mushrooms in a bowl and place the damp paper towel over top of my mushrooms.

Store it this way in the fridge until you are ready to cook with them.

When you are ready to use them, the best way to clean your mushrooms is by using a kitchen towel or clean hands to simply wipe any dirt off of them.

Rinsing mushrooms can actually cause them to get a little slimy, and that sliminess can remain even after cooking them!

Once clean, simply slice the mushrooms longways into thin strips as pictured below. Depending on the size of each mushroom, you will likely slice them into anywhere from 3 to 5 pieces.

How to Mince Garlic

Using fresh minced garlic goes a long way in this delicious veggie-packed pasta dish. In order to mince your garlic, you have to peel it first.

My favorite way to peel the outer layer off the garlic is by crushing it with the flat side of my knife first. Lay individual garlic cloves flat on your cutting board and use the side of your knife to push down on the garlic until you hear it crush.

This will split open the outer layer, making it super easy to peel away. Once you’ve completely peeled your garlic, you can use a sharp knife to mince it.

Just continue to chop and dice until the garlic is in tiny pieces. Simple as that!

Cook Down Your Mushrooms First

Add the minced garlic and sliced mushrooms to a large saucepan or shallow pot with the olive oil, salt, and pepper.

Cook over medium-high heat until the liquid releases from the mushrooms. This should take about 5 minutes.

Add the Pasta Next

Next, add the pasta to the pot, layered on top of the cooked mushrooms. While you can really use any pasta, changing the shape of the pasta will also change the cooking time.

I’ve tested this recipe with both Fettuccine and Linguine and found they had about the same optimal cooking time of 10-12 minutes, so I recommend using one of those two.

Though this may be controversial, if your pan isn’t big enough, you can break your pasta in half so that it fits snuggly in the pot or pan. It’s very important that your pasta lays flat so that it cooks evenly.

Green tip: When it comes to choosing a starch with a lower carbon footprint, pasta is a great option! Manufacturing is a relatively less intensive process (less energy used), and its long shelf-life means you’re less likely to waste it!

How to Infuse More Flavor into One-Pot Pasta

With one pot pasta’s, we add just the right amount of liquid for the pasta to absorb, so we aren’t actually straining and draining excess liquid. I absolutely love one-pot recipes because it makes clean up a breeze!

Green tip: Speaking of cleanup, if you have a dishwasher-use it! Comparing dishwashing to handwashing, using an efficient dishwasher uses 1/6th the amount of water to get your dishes clean!

In this recipe, we are using vegetable broth instead of water in order to infuse extra flavor into the pasta.

Pour the broth over the pasta, so that the pasta is completely submerged in liquid. Then, cover and cook your pasta al dente for about 10-12 minutes.

Make sure to stir occasionally so the noodles do not stick to one another or to the bottom of the pan.

Add the Spinach, Wine, and Lemon

Next, remove the cover and add the spinach, white wine, and lemon juice and zest.

I highly recommend using a citrus squeezer to extract the juice from your lemon. This not only gets the most juice out, but will also catch the seeds so they don’t fall into your pasta.

If you don’t have a citrus squeezer, just make sure you squeeze the lemon juice into a separate bowl first, so you can remove the seeds.

Either way, rinse your lemon first, and use a zester or cheese grater, to add the zest. Then, slice your lemon in half so you can juice it.

Add the spinach and white wine, too, and continue to heat uncovered so that the liquid cooks off. Stir frequently until almost all of the liquid has dissolved.

Add the Butter Last

The last step is removing your pan from the heat and adding the butter. Use the residual heat in your pan to melt the butter, continuously tossing and stirring until the pasta is fully coated in melted butter.

This will give you the best texture on your pasta and the most butter-forward flavor in this lemony white wine sauce.

How to Serve Spinach & Mushroom Pasta

This Mushroom Spinach Pasta is hearty enough to serve as a main on its own. Here are my favorite appetizers and sides to serve with this dish:

• Caprese Bruschetta
• Garlic Bread Spread
• Caprese Asparagus
• Pesto Butter Garlic Bread

How to Store and Reheat White Wine Pasta

This Spinach & Mushroom Pasta will last in the refrigerator in an airtight container for up to ten days. It also freezes well and can easily be frozen for up to a year.

You can reheat this pasta on the stovetop, in the oven, or in the microwave from the refrigerator or the freezer.

I do recommend adding a splash of extra broth or white wine before reheating.

You can use the defrost or reheat settings on your microwave, or simply heat on the highest setting, covered, until thoroughly heated through (usually about 5 minutes, stirring in between).

To reheat on the stove, simply add the pasta to a pot or saucepan with the extra splash of liquid, cover, and heat over medium, stirring frequently until heated through.

For the oven reheating method, add your pasta to a baking dish and cover it with aluminum foil. Bake at 350°F for about 15 minutes until heated through.

Green tip: Did you know that 50% of food waste happens in our homes? Reduce your contribution to food waste is to properly store and reheat your leftovers so you can consume them.

Mushroom Spinach Pasta Frequently Asked Questions

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How do you measure water for one pot of pasta?

For one pot pastas where the water is being completely absorbed by the pasta and not strained, use 4 cups of liquid for 16 ounces of pasta.

Why You Should Make this Lemony Mushroom Spinach Pasta with White Wine

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• It’s quick. This meal comes together in less than 30 minutes.
• It’s easy. Easy to cook AND easy to clean up!
• The flavors! Buttery, lemony, white wine sauce plus hearty mushrooms and fresh spinach. This pasta packs so much flavor!

If you’re loving this Mushroom Spinach Pasta and want similar dishes, check out this Salmon Spinach Pasta with White Wine Sauce and this Lemon Shrimp Pasta.