Tomato Boursin Pasta

If you can't find garlic and herb Boursin, you can also substitue it for garlic and herb cream cheese.

Serves: 4
Prep Time: 5 min
Cook Time: 15 min

INGREDIENTS

• 1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
• 2 medium shallots, finely chopped
• 2 tbsp tomato purée
• 1 x 400g chopped tomatoes
• pinch of each: granulated sugar, chilli flakes (optional)
• 350g spaghetti or long-cut pasta of choice
• 100 g baby spinach
• 1 x 150g pack of garlic and herb Boursin cheese
• 40g Parmesan cheese, grated, plus extra to serve if desired
• salt and pepper to taste

METHOD

1. Heat the olive oil in a large saucepan over a medium heat. add the shallots and fry for 2–3 minutes until softened and golden. stir in the tomato purée and fry for 30–60 seconds (this is important to sweeten the purée). Add the chopped tomatoes, then swill out the tin with a splash of water and add that in too. Season with a pinch of salt, pepper, sugar and chilli flakes, if using. Bring to a gentle simmer and cook for 10 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the tomatoes thicken.

2. Meanwhile, cook the pasta in a large saucepan of salted boiling water until al dente.

3. A couple of minutes before the pasta is done, stir the spinach into the sauce as best you can. Once the spinach starts to wilt, stir in the Boursin (or cream cheese) until it melts and combines with the sauce.

4. Use tongs to transfer the pasta straight from the pan into the sauce and toss to combine. sprinkle in the Parmesan and continue tossing and swirling the pasta until the sauce thickens and coats the pasta. If the sauce over-thickens, add in an extra splash of pasta water to loosen it up.
   
   
5. Check for seasoning and adjust with salt and pepper, then serve ore Parmesan if desired.

Notes

Sugar: this will balance out any acidity from the tomatoes. It is optional, so don’t feel like you need to add it.

Spinach: it’ll be tricky to combine it with the sauce at first, but as it starts to wilt you’ll be able to stir it through the sauce with ease. It’ll also seem like there’s way too much at the start, but it wilts down a lot!