21 Warm & Cozy Pasta Dishes to Make This Winter
Photographer: Jen Causey, Food Stylist: Margaret Monroe Dickey, Prop Stylist: Christina Daley
Cozy up with a delicious bowl of pasta to warm you up this winter! These delightful dishes are bursting with flavor and showcase the endless versatility of pasta, paired with a variety of sauces and mouthwatering stir-ins. You’ll love options like our One-Pot White Bean, Spinach & Sun-Dried Tomato Orzo or our Broccoli-Pesto Pasta to keep the winter chill at bay!
Cheesy One-Pot Chicken-Broccoli Orzo
Photographer: Robby Lozano, Food Stylist: Emily Nabors Hall, Prop Stylist: Lydia Pursell
This cheesy chicken-broccoli orzo is the ultimate weeknight game-changer. This dish brings crowd-pleasing flavors together in one pan for easy cleanup. It’s perfect for busy nights when you want something satisfying, comforting and delicious. Sharp Cheddar cheese adds savory flavor, but another easy-melting cheese like Gruyère or Swiss would work well too.
One-Pot White Bean, Spinach & Sun-Dried Tomato Orzo
Photographer: Jen Causey, Food Stylist: Margaret Monroe Dickey, Prop Stylist: Christina Daley
This creamy orzo with white beans and sun-dried tomatoes is the ultimate weeknight winner, ready in just 30 minutes! This comforting dish combines tender orzo, protein-packed white beans and tangy sun-dried tomatoes in a creamy garlic-and-herb cheese sauce. This one-pot meal is both quick and satisfying, perfect for those busy evenings when you want something hearty without the hassle.
Baked Brie, Sun-Dried Tomato & Spinach Pasta
Photographer: Robby Lozano, Food Stylist: Marianne Williams, Prop Stylist: Josh Hoggle
Creamy, melted Brie creates a velvety sauce that fills in the ridges of fusilli pasta, ensuring the sauce clings to every bite, while Parmesan cheese adds nutty, savory depth. Sun-dried tomatoes bring a tangy sweetness that balances the richness. Add a hint of heat with a little crushed red pepper, plus wilted spinach for earthy notes and nutrients, and you’ve got a balanced dish that feels both hearty and refined.
Taco Skillet Pasta
Photographer: Jen Causey, Food Stylist: Emily Nabors Hall, Prop Stylist: Julia Bayless
This taco pasta casserole is the ultimate mashup of comfort food and Tex-Mex flavors. This one-pan wonder that combines pasta with classic taco ingredients cuts down on cleanup and packs a serious protein punch, thanks to lean ground beef and shredded Mexican cheese. Top it off with fresh cilantro, avocado, tomato and a dollop of sour cream for a nutritious, flavor-packed meal that’s sure to become a weeknight favorite.
Caramelized Onion & Sun-Dried Tomato Pasta
Photographer: Greg DuPree, Food Stylist: Chelsea Zimmer, Prop Stylist: Abby Armstrong
This caramelized onion and sun-dried tomato pasta uses the fuss-free method of making caramelized onions in the oven, which requires very little stirring or attention. The onions, combined with sun-dried tomatoes and a splash of heavy cream, will make this super-savory pasta a hit with vegetarians and omnivores alike. If you’re looking for a boost of protein, serve it with roasted chicken or white beans on top.
Broccoli-Pesto Pasta
Photographer: Jen Causey, Food Stylist: Jennifer Wendorf, Prop Stylist: Christina Brockman
This broccoli pesto pasta is a delicious fiber-rich dinner that can help maintain a healthy gut. Seek out artichoke hearts packed in water or use thawed frozen artichokes in their place. Serve this plant-based meal with a green salad and a hunk of whole-grain bread on the side to sop up the leftovers.
Creamy Garlic-Parmesan Chicken Pasta Bake
Photographer: Morgan Hunt Glaze, Food Stylist: Margaret Monroe Dickey, Prop Stylist: Priscilla Montiel
This creamy garlic-Parmesan chicken-and-spinach pasta bake is a comforting crowd-pleaser that’s sure to satisfy everyone at the table. This dish features tender pieces of chicken, fresh spinach and pasta, all enveloped in a rich and creamy garlic-Parmesan sauce. While we love baby spinach for its ease of use, any green can be used in its place.
Fajita-Inspired Pasta Bake
Photographer: Jen Causey, Food Stylist: Jennifer Wendorf, Prop Stylist: Lindsey Lower
This easy chicken fajita pasta bake perfectly blends the vibrant flavors of classic fajitas with a rich and creamy pasta dish. The result is a mouthwatering fusion of flavors, offering the best of both worlds in a single, satisfying meal.
Mushroom-Miso Pasta
Photographer: Jacob Fox, Food stylist: Holly Dreesman, Prop stylist: Joseph Wanek
This miso pasta features mushrooms, another umami-forward ingredient that takes this quick vegetarian recipe to the next level. We use white miso, which is light and slightly sweet. Whisking the miso into the reserved cooking water makes it easier to incorporate into the pasta.
One-Pot White Bean, Spinach & Sun-Dried Tomato Orzo with Lemon & Feta
Photographer: Jen Causey, Food Stylist: Julian Hensarling, Prop Stylist: Julia Bayless
This one-pot pasta dish with white beans, spinach and sun-dried tomatoes is lively and vibrant and leaves you with an easy cleanup. Toasting the orzo before adding the broth adds another layer of flavor. Another dark leafy green like chopped kale or Swiss chard can stand in for the spinach, but may take longer to wilt in the pan. If you use a sturdier green, add it to the pan during the last 5 minutes of cooking time.
Chicken Carbonara
Photographer: Jacob Fox, Food stylist: Holly Dreesman, Prop stylist: Joseph Wanek
This chicken carbonara has the classic all-yolk sauce, which yields a rich and creamy texture. For some carbonara recipes the residual heat and starch from the pasta are enough to thicken the yolks, but we prefer the double-boiler method to gently cook the egg yolks to a custard-like texture without the risk of overcooking them to a scramble.
Haluski (Cabbage & Noodles)
Photographer: Rachel Marek, Prop stylist: Holly Dreesman, Food stylist: Gabriel Greco
This Eastern European classic is so much more than the sum of its humble parts. Made with just four simple ingredients, it’s an easy add-in to your dinner rotation. For an extra boost of fiber, you can use whole-wheat egg noodles. This recipe is also easy to veganize too: simply swap out the butter for vegan butter and use egg-free pasta instead of egg noodles.
Roasted Garlicky Cauliflower with Glass Noodles
This satisfying main dish features sweet potato glass noodles and roasted cauliflower tossed in a sweet and spicy sauce made with fish sauce, sambal oelek and maple syrup. If the glass noodles are too long, you can cut them in half with kitchen shears.
Beet Pasta with Goat Cheese & Walnuts
Beets are blended to create a vibrant sauce for an easy way to amp up your veggie intake. We use marinated beets for extra flavor, but you can easily substitute plain cooked beets—just add a bit of lemon juice or white-wine vinegar to balance the sauce. Goat cheese adds creaminess while walnuts provide a satisfying crunch in this healthy pasta dish.
Chickpea Pasta with Mushrooms & Kale
Loading up your pasta with vegetables like the kale and mushrooms here is not only delicious, it also makes the meal more satisfying.
Rotini with Creamy Pumpkin Pasta Sauce
William Dickey
This creamy pumpkin pasta sauce, spiked with fresh herbs and Parmesan cheese, is a great fall alternative to traditional tomato-based sauce. Here, we serve it with pasta, but it can also be used on pizza or as a dipping sauce alongside fresh-baked breadsticks.
Chicken, Mushroom & Ricotta Pasta
Ricotta cheese is the key to this easy pasta dish. Combined with Parmesan cheese, lemon juice and a little bit of pasta cooking water, it adds richness and texture that clings to the pasta and veggies perfectly. For the smoothest results, use freshly grated Parmesan—pre-grated cheese often contains cellulose that can prevent melting.
Cauliflower Rigatoni with Preserved Orange Tapenade
The preserved orange in this tapenade brightens the flavor of the olives and complements the bright green notes from the parsley and basil. The tapenade is also great spooned over hummus, used in place of pizza sauce, as a sandwich spread or mixed into roasted vegetables.
Roasted Brussels Sprouts Pasta with Lemon
This Brussels sprouts pasta features roasted Brussels sprouts for a boost of flavor. The char of the sprouts is balanced by lemon juice for a bright, healthy pasta dish. If you can't find whole-wheat fusilli, regular fusilli is an easy substitution.
Spaghetti with Baked Brie, Mushrooms & Spinach
Melted Brie cheese coats pasta and roasted veggies in this rich vegetarian pasta dish. White balsamic vinegar adds tang and a hint of sweetness in this easy weeknight dinner.
Creamy Sausage & Kale Pasta
This quick, comforting gluten-free pasta is perfect for weeknights when cooler weather sets in. Red lentil pasta is coated in a creamy, savory sauce flavored with sausage and packed with plenty of kale. Serve with a green salad on the side.
Read the original article on EATINGWELL
