Chickpea and Spinach Orecchiette

Chickpea and Spinach Orecchiette is a vegan pasta dinner that will keep you full for hours with layers of ingredients and a blast of flavors.

We try to have meatless and/or vegan meals once per week, so when I find one that looks promising, I bookmark it or tear the page from a magazine. Well, Chickpea and Spinach Orecchiette fits the category of vegan, but what in the world is “orecchiette?”

Orecchiette directly translates to “little ears” in Italian, which has much to do with their shape. They’re a round, concave pasta that originated in Puglia in southern Italy. They’re thinner in the middle than they are on the edges, which gives them a unique texture. These little noodles have been around for hundreds of years and have yet to lose popularity.

https://spoonuniversity.com/lifestyle/what-is-orecchiette

Even though it says orecchiette is a popular type of pasta, I had never heard of it before. I had to do a quick search to see what it looked like so I would know what to look for in the store. I found a bag of orecchiette with the rest of the pasta in my grocery store, it was just up on a top shelf.

As usual, I changed many things about this recipe as I made it. Some were changes out of necessity because I didn’t have or couldn’t find an ingredient. Some of the changes were personal preference.

I know I often mention how much I change a recipe as I make it, but this is a good visual. You can see how much I have marked through the recipe that I tore from the magazine (I don’t remember which one now) and changed either the ingredients, or the amounts, or the method. I removed some ingredients and added others.

Also, as I make these recipes, I find that they are ambitious on how quickly a recipe can be completed. It always takes me a bit longer than listed to cook something.

The overall dish came out much different than I thought it would, but we enjoyed it. There were some very bold flavors in this, including the black olives. Then again, I am not a big fan of black olives, so that may be why the taste stood out to me.

This pasta is very filling, so make sure to serve it in small bowls. You can always go back for more. But we didn’t eat a lot of this before we were feeling full. It did reheat pretty well the next day. You’ll just want to store the panko separate so it doesn’t get soggy.

Chickpea and Spinach Orecchiette Step by Step

Ingredients

Pasta

• 3 cups water
• 2 tsp salt
• 1 lb orecchiette pasta
• 1/4 cup olive oil
• 1/2 sweet onion
• 1/2 cup black olives (pitted, chopped)
• 3 cloves garlic (minced)
• 1/2 tsp red pepper flakes
• 15 oz diced tomatoes (undrained)
• 14.5 oz chickpeas (undrained)
• 5 oz spinach
• 1 tbsp lemon juice

Panko Topping

• 1 tbsp olive oil
• 1 cup panko
• 2 tsp lemon zest

Instructions

In a medium pot, boil the pasta in water and salt for about 7-8 minutes, just until the pasta starts to get tender. Stir occasionally so it doesn’t stick to the bottom of the pot. Once the pasta has cooked, make sure to reserve one cup of the water before draining the pasta.

Meanwhile, heat 1/4 cup of olive oil in a large stockpot over medium-high. Chop the onion and add it to the oil, cooking for about 5 minutes, until it’s softened.

Stir the olives, garlic, and red pepper flakes into the onion and let it sizzle for one minute.

Add the tomatoes into the stockpot and let it simmer for about 7-8 minutes so the flavors blend together. Stir frequently.

Carefully scoop one cup of the water from the boiling pasta and pour it into the stockpot. Then add the cooked pasta and chickpeas.

Add the spinach. Cook until the pasta is tender and the spinach has wilted about 5 minutes. Pour in the lemon juice and stir it in.

Meanwhile, dry out the pot that the pasta was cooked in (to create fewer dishes to wash later) and add one tbsp of olive oil. Heat the oil over medium heat. Add the panko and lemon zest. Toast the panko, stirring often so it doesn’t burn, for 3-4 minutes, until it is golden brown.

Spoon the pasta into serving bowls and drizzle with a bit of olive oil and top with toasted panko.

Chickpea and Spinach Orecchiette Leftovers

Storage: Leftovers should be stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 3 days. Store the topping separately from the pasta so it doesn’t absorb all of the liquid.

Reheating: The best way to reheat the pasta is in a sauce pot on the stovetop.

Freezing: As most pasta breaks down a lot when frozen, I don’t suggest freezing this meal.

Recipe

Chickpea and Spinach Orecchiette

Chickpea and Spinach Orecchiette is a vegan pasta dinner that will keep you full for hours with layers of ingredients and a blast of flavors.

Prep Time 5 minutes minutes

Cook Time 35 minutes minutes

Total Time 40 minutes minutes

Course:

Main Dish

Cuisine:

American

Keyword:

chickpeas

|

pasta

|

spinach

|

vegan

Servings: 8 servings

5 from 6 votes

Ingredients

Pasta

• 3 cups water
• 2 tsp salt
• 1 lb orecchiette pasta
• 1/4 cup olive oil
• 1/2 sweet onion
• 1/2 cup black olives (pitted, chopped)
• 3 cloves garlic (minced)
• 1/2 tsp red pepper flakes
• 15 oz diced tomatoes (undrained)
• 14.5 oz chickpeas (undrained)
• 5 oz spinach
• 1 tbsp lemon juice

Panko Topping

• 1 tbsp olive oil
• 1 cup panko
• 2 tsp lemon zest

Recommended Equipment

• Saucepan – Medium
• Colander
• Stockpot
• Chef Knife
• Garlic Press
• Lemon Zester

Instructions

• In a medium pot, boil the pasta in water and salt for about 7-8 minutes, just until the pasta starts to get tender, stirring occasionally so it doesn’t stick to the bottom of the pot
• Once pasta has cooked, make sure to reserve one cup of the water before draining the pasta
• Meanwhile, heat 1/4 cup of olive oil in a large stockpot over medium-high
• Chop the onion and add it to the oil, cooking for about 5 minutes, until it’s softened
• Stir the olives, garlic, and red pepper flakes into the onion and let it sizzle for one minute
• Add the tomatoes into the stockpot and let it simmer for about 7-8 minutes so the flavors blend together, stirring frequently
• Carefully scoop one cup of the water from the boiling pasta and pour it into the stockpot
• Add the cooked pasta, chickpeas, and spinach
• Cook until the pasta is tender and the spinach has wilted, about 5 minutes
• Pour in the lemon juice and stir it in
• Meanwhile, dry out the pot that the pasta was cooked in (to create less dishes to wash later) and add one tbsp of olive oil, heating over medium heat
• Add the panko and lemon zest
• Toast the panko, stirring often so it doesn’t burn, for 3-4 minutes, until it is golden brown
• Spoon the pasta into serving bowls and drizzle with a bit of olive oil and top with toasted panko

Click the buttons below to share and print this recipe

Pin Recipe Print Recipe

Nutrition Facts

Chickpea and Spinach Orecchiette

Amount Per Serving

Calories 434 Calories from Fat 108

% Daily Value*

Fat 12g18%

Saturated Fat 1g5%

Sodium 802mg33%

Potassium 518mg15%

Carbohydrates 67g22%

Fiber 7g28%

Sugar 6g7%

Protein 14g28%

Vitamin A 1810IU36%

Vitamin C 13.3mg16%

Calcium 98mg10%

Iron 3.7mg21%

* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.

All nutritional information is based on third-party calculations and should be considered estimates. Actual nutrition content will vary based on brands used, measuring methods, portion sizes, and more.

Related Recipes

• Vegan Chickpea Skillet Dinner
• Golden Chicken and Chickpea Salad
• Crispy Chicken with Gravy
• Crispy Chicken with Salad
• Chicken and Spinach Casserole with Cream Cheese