With just 4 ingredients, this vibrant spinach pasta dough comes together quickly by hand, in a food processor, or with a KitchenAid stand mixer. Light, delicate and beautiful on the plate, use it to make spaghetti, homemade lasagna noodles, pappardelle pasta and more. Serves 4.
In my master recipe, you learned how to make fresh homemade pasta dough. Here, we’re doing a simple spinach variation made with fresh spinach, eggs and olive oil. The color is beautiful, and the taste far exceeds store-bought.
I like to hand-chop my spinach, rather than puréeing it in a blender. You’ll get a rustic “speckled” dough with bright green flecks throughout instead of a solid green look.
I also use Italian 00 flour, a fine-milled soft wheat flour that creates exceptional light and tender pasta and a dough that’s easy to knead (all purpose flour can be used in a pinch).
To serve, please don’t drown this pasta in sauce! It’s delicate. I recommend my butter and sage pasta sauce or ragù Bolognese to let the fresh spinach taste sing!
Before You Begin: You’ll need to blanch the spinach in boiling water for 30 seconds. Drain and run under cold water to halt the cooking process (doing so will keep the color bright green). Squeeze dry in a paper towel. Chop into very small pieces.
How To Make Spinach Pasta Dough {Step-by-Step Recipe}
Step 1: Mix The Eggs & Spinach
In a small bowl, beat the eggs and olive oil together. Stir in the chopped spinach.
Step 2: Make The Dough
Combine the flour and spinach/egg mixture. You can do this by creating a well on your work surface or in a large bowl, which is less messy.
Once the dough gets really stiff, push it together with your hands, adding a few drops of olive oil to moisten the texture, if needed. It will be dry at first. Cover and rest for 10 minutes.
Step 3: Knead The Dough
Now onto the fun part! Push the dough forward with the heel of your hand while rocking it back and forth (watch this video). Once it’s soft and malleable, you’re done. Don’t overthink it.
Step 4: Shape & Rest
Shape the dough into a ball, cover tightly with plastic wrap, and rest for 30 minutes at room temperature.
TIP: Don’t want to mix by hand?: Instructions for mixing in a food processor (30-60 seconds) or stand mixer (8 minutes) can be found in the recipe card below.
Step 5: Roll The Dough Into Sheets
Now, cut the dough into 4 pieces, keeping the remaining ones covered so they don’t dry out. Flatten one piece into an oval disc.
To Roll the Dough into Sheets: Send the dough through the KitchenAid roller attachment on the widest setting #1, 2-3 times. Then continue to roll through settings #2-4 (2x on each setting) for spaghetti, fettuccini and pappardelle pasta. For spinach ravioli, the dough needs to be thinner, so go up to #5. Then place your sheets on a semolina dusted tray.
Step 6: Cut The Sheets Into Pasta
First, let the pasta sheets semi-dry. Not everyone does this, but I do to get a slightly firmer texture before cutting. Drape the pasta sheets over the back of a chair or on a rod for about 5-15 minutes. Make sure they don’t dry out.
To Cut the Pasta: Run it through your pasta cutter of choice. I used the spaghetti attachment for this post.
When finished, dust the pasta noodles liberally with semolina flour to prevent sticking, and then coil or lay flat until ready to cook. I’ve included storage options in the recipe below.
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Fresh Spinach Pasta Dough
- Prep Time: 10
- Total Time: 10 minutes
- Yield: Serves 4
- Category: Homemade Pasta
- Method: Handcrafted
- Cuisine: Italian
Description
Fresh spinach pasta, made simple. With just 4 ingredients, this vibrant dough comes together quickly by hand, in a food processor, or with a KitchenAid stand mixer. Light, delicate and beautiful on the plate, it’s a foolproof way to elevate homemade pasta night.
Ingredients
- 150 g fresh spinach (I like tender, baby spinach leaves)
- 1 large egg (55 g)
- 1 egg yolk (18 g)
- 250 g Tipo 00 flour (or King Arthur all purpose flour )
- 12 g olive oil, plus more as needed
Pasta Equipment
- Kitchen Aid Stand Mixer (w/ pasta attachments) or Pasta Machine
Instructions
Before You Begin: Wash and trim the spinach thoroughly. Make sure there’s no dirt on the leaves. Remove any large stems. Blanch the spinach in a pot of boiling water for 30 seconds. Drain and run under cold water to halt the cooking process (doing so will keep the color bright green). Squeeze dry in a paper towel. Get all the water out. Chop into very small pieces. Set aside.
Step #1: Make the Dough
The traditional way (by hand):
- In a small bowl, beat the egg, egg yolk, and olive oil together. Add the chopped spinach. Set aside.
- Mound the flour onto a board (or bowl). Make a well in the center; add the spinach mixture. Using a fork, mix everything together, gradually incorporating the flour as you go. Finish by hand to form a cohesive dough- it will be very dry at first. This is normal. You can add a few drops of olive oil to moisten the texture, if needed. Cover and let rest for 10 minutes before kneading (I use an upturned bowl for this). The dough will be softer and easier to work with.
- Knead the dough for 5-7 minutes. Do this by pushing the dough forward with the heel of your hand while rocking the dough back and forth. (watch this video). The goal is a soft, malleable dough with a talcum powder finish. Poke it when you’re done- it should bounce back.
- Shape into a ball, cover tightly with plastic wrap, and rest for 30 minutes at room temperature. The next step is to roll and cut the dough.
Food Processor Instructions:
Add the chopped spinach, egg, egg yolk and olive oil to the bowl. Pulse 1 or 2 times just to combine. Add the flour. Run the machine until the dough comes together (if it seems a bit dry, add a few drops of olive oil). Remove the dough to your work surface and let rest for 1 minute. If the dough is a bit sticky after resting, add a sprinkle of flour. Knead by hand for 1-2 minutes (the food processor does most of the kneading for you). Form the dough into a ball, cover tightly with plastic wrap, and rest at room temperature for 30 minutes.
Stand Mixer Instructions:
Add the chopped spinach, egg, egg yolk and oil to the bowl. Give it a quick mix- I do this with a fork. Add the flour. Mix to combine with the dough hook. Then knead on speed #1 or #2, about 4-5 minutes. Form the dough into a ball, cover tightly with plastic wrap, and rest at room temperature for 30 minutes.
Step #2: Roll the Dough into Sheets
- Cut the dough into 4 equal pieces; flatten one into a thin 6-8-inch oval disc (re-wrap the remaining pieces so they don’t dry out).
- If using a Kitchen Aid stand mixer, send the dough through the roller attachment at the lowest/widest setting. This is “#1.” Now, send it through again (so, 2x total). Note: if you are using a hand-crank pasta machine, refer to the manufacture’s specific instructions for rolling the dough. The numbered settings might differ but the rolling process is the same.
- Continue to roll through settings #2-4 (2x on each setting) for spaghetti, fettuccini and pappardelle. For ravioli, the dough needs to be thinner- go up to #5 or #6.
- When finished, fold the pasta sheet in half, place onto a semolina dusted tray, and cover with a clean kitchen towel. Roll the remaining 3 pieces of dough.
Step #3: Cut the Pasta
- First allow the pasta sheets to semi-dry. You’ll get a slightly firmer texture, rather than soft and doughy pasta strands. Drape the pasta sheets over the back of a chair or on a rod for about 5-15 minutes, depending on temperature.
- Divide a pasta sheet in half. Run it through your pasta cutter of choice- I used the spaghetti attachment.
- Dust the pasta noodles liberally with semolina flour to prevent sticking- don’t skimp here.
How to Store Fresh Pasta: If you’re not cooking the pasta right away, cover well floured spinach pasta, on a tray, with plastic wrap. Leave at room temperature if cooking within 1-2 hours. Alternatively, refrigerate until ready to cook, up to 12 hrs. It’s best to cook homemade pasta on the same day it’s made, otherwise it might oxidize, discolor and stick together if chilled past 24 hrs.
Comments
Cindy says
Can this be made with King Arthur all purpose flour gluten-free 1 to 1?
Jill says
Absolutely incredible! I rolled it too thin, but the flavor was amazing. I added it to a pan of garlic butter cooked shrimp. I put half of the dough in the freezer to enjoy another day. This is only the 4th time I’ve made pasta from scratch.
Jack says
The perfect recipe. I have been searching for this recipe for quite a while. The pasta is unbelievable. Can this recipe be adapted to a KitchenAid extruder attachment? If so, please forward ingredient list & amounts.
Leda Cristina Prates Vicenzetto says
Aprendi com minha nonna. Após cortar a massa, polvilhar com fubá. Ao cozinhá-la, o fubá se desprende.
JOHN BRADY says
You need to blend chopped spinach and pasta together before pouring into flour well. Had to re-do recipe before realizing that.
April Gering says
Yes, that happened to me too. More speckled looking tha green.
Christina C says
First time making spinach pasta, all by hand. I followed the directions and measured everything to a T, added a splash more olive oil. Dough was fantastically perfect! Taste spot on, finished with a brown butter sage sauce. Thanks a bunch.
Emilie Raffa says
This is excellent feedback Christina, thank you. You nailed it. 🥰
Marcello Pecchenino says
my suggestion is to work fast! As an italian living in the Philippines it is super hot here as well, so i cant mess around when making fresh pasta, plan ahead,have everything ready, and work fast !, also…practice…practice…..practice,you can never ndoit enough, but done enough you will master it and make pasta easily and in the end make people happy!
Regards
Marcello Pecchenino
Emilie Raffa says
This is excellent advice, Marcello! Extreme heat can really challenge you, especially when dealing with dough. And 100% YES to practice!
Ashley says
Is there no way to preserve? Dry thoroughly? Or freeze?
Sage says
Have you ever tried this recipe using sourdough?
Avon says
OMG this was sooooo delicious! This was only my second time making homemade pasta, and I found the recipe very easy to follow. The dough looked beautiful, and the pasta tasted delightful. I paired it with a homemade Alfredo sauce, which was a perfect match. Luckily I made a double batch, because my family of 6 loved it. In fact, we all overate and were miserably full after.
For people saying the dough was too dry, you may have over-drained your spinach. I was worried about it being too wet, so after blanching I put mine in a salad spinner, then pressed it between several layers of paper towels, then squeezed it by hand, then paper towels again. My dough was very dry at first, so I just kept adding olive oil and wetting my hands to add moisture until the dough came together. It’s impossible to measure how much water is being contributed from the spinach, so your wet:dry ratio may be off in the beginning. Just add more wet or dry until you reach the right consistency.
Emilie Raffa says
This is excellent feedback, Avon. Thank you! Great tip about the salad spinner too. Spinach pasta dough definitely has a different feeling than regular fresh pasta dough due to the addition of chopped spinach. But like you’ve said, you have to go by feel to get the right texture. Lovely.
Ann T Rogers says
I have a question, on step #2 you say fold the pasta sheets in half. Do you cover them in flour to keep from sticking then unfold them to hang to dry? My first round was pretty darn sticky and even ripped. We cooked them anyway. They weren’t pretty but they were tasty
Michele says
Hi Emilie! I followed your recipe to an T, and measured and weighed everything, but ended up with an unuseable mess! I see others have tried it and it worked, so I have no idea why I just wasted a morning and all those ingredients and got such a poor result. It is unusable. I just returned from Italy and we used two eggs for 175 g of flour, so I was very reluctant to add the 250 g your recipe calls for, and I just ended up with a pile that would not stick together, even after adding an extra egg yoke and two more teaspoons of oil . I don’t know what went wrong. I managed to get it into a mound and covered it for the 10 minutes with my moist spinach cloth to hopefully add a bit more moisture to it as I didn’t want to add any more ingredients, and even after kneading it for seven minutes, I have three separate piles of Dry Play-Doh consistency and a bunch of crumbs all over my board! Any ideas?
Emilie Raffa says
Hi Michele! Thanks for sharing your feedback. I’m sorry to hear that. I actually made a batch of dough this afternoon to have with red wine braised beef for dinner tonight, so I’m happy to help. The process is fresh in my head.
So, as you know- pasta dough is naturally firm, but soft and pliable like play-doh. That’s normal. When the dough won’t stick together or is very crumbly after the 10 minute rest, that’s not normal. The flour to liquid ratio is off. This could have been from a miscalculation somewhere or from a brand/type of flour that needed more liquid to hydrate (they’re all different).
Here’s what I’m thinking:
1.) You weighed all of your ingredients, correct?
2.) Did you weigh your eggs, after cracking them?
3.) Did you use Italian Tipo 00 flour? Or something else? What type and brand?
With a bit more info, I’ll circle back with my additional thoughts. Thanks! 🥰
Jeff says
Could you make this gluten free?
Bekah says
Tried recipe and loved it! Could it be made with Kale?🧐🧐🧐
Emilie Raffa says
This is a great question. I haven’t tried it, but I don’t see why not! You can always add more water/flour if the consistency needs to be adjusted. Let me know how it goes if you experiment.
Raquel Mendonça says
Please, what is the appropriate room temperature for making this type of recipe? I live in a hot place and I worry if this would affect the quality of the dough.
Emilie Raffa says
I would say a moderate room temperature is best, about 70-72 F. The dough will be easier to handle. But if you live in a hot area, please do not let this deter you from making the dough altogether. Simply prepare it according to the directions, cover tightly in plastic wrap, and chill in the fridge until ready to roll out. Chilled pasta dough (with egg) must rest at room temperature for 30 minutes or so before rolling.
Crystal Helton says
Made this tonight and it turned out great! Easy dough to work with and so pretty.
Emilie Raffa says
Excellent! I’m so glad you liked it. Isn’t the green color so pretty?
Vic says
Just bought a Philips Pasta Maker, which version works best for this machine? Thank you
Emilie Raffa says
Hi Vic! I would try the classic pasta dough recipe first to get a feel for the machine and the overall process. Then try the spinach version. Either way, just make sure to refer to the manufacturer’s instructions for making the dough before you begin. The sequence or steps might differ than mine.