Spaghetti with Sun Dried Tomatoes & Spinach

As my first recipe post, I was excited, nervous and hungry! Jon and I just came back from Boston for a wedding, and this recipe was the perfect quick fix! Easy and relatively simple, it's both filling and satisfying. This could easily be made vegan by omitting the feta and gluten-free by using gluten-free pasta.

I was cooking for the second time in my sister-in-law's kitchen and I had some issues finding all of the utensils that I needed and forgot I needed balsamic vinegar at some point, and realized I (unknowingly and happily) bought Mediterranean feta instead of regular feta, but the meal turned out great despite all of that!

Whoops feta! Ended up adding great flavor to the pasta

Bizarre thin, plastic cutting board, but does the job!

Roasting up some garlic-- mmm! It ends up giving it a roasted garlic flavor

Mixing it up in the pan. Love those colors!

Done. Bad lighting.

Ingredients: 
1 (13.25 oz) box Whole Grain Spaghetti

1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
1 head garlic, cloves peeled and thinly sliced lengthwise
1 cup chopped sun dried tomatoes, packed in oil
5 cups washed spinach leaves
2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
1 cup crumbled feta cheese
Salt and black pepper, to taste

Directions:
1. Start by peeling slicing the garlic; that's the most time-consuming part.

2. Cook spaghetti in a pot of boiling salted water until al dente, about 7 minutes. Reserve 1 cup pasta cooking water and drain pasta. (I forgot to reserve the cup, but it still turned out fine)

3. Heat olive oil in a small skillet over medium heat until it shimmers, then cook garlic, stirring, until golden, about 3 minutes. Transfer garlic with a slotted spoon to paper towels to drain.

4. In a large skillet, heat 1 tablespoon of the oil from the sun dried tomatoes. Add sun dried tomatoes, spinach, and balsamic vinegar. Cook over medium-high heat until spinach is wilted, about 3-4 minutes. Remove from heat if pasta still needs a minute or two.

5. Toss spaghetti with the sun dried tomatoes and spinach. Stir in the 1/2 cup pasta water. Season with salt and pepper. Sprinkle spaghetti with feta cheese and toasted garlic chips. Serve warm.

Recipe credits go to Two Peas and Their Pod