Our 30 Best Pasta Dinners

By

Danielle DeAngelis

Published on October 3, 2022

Pasta comes in all shapes and sizes and can be enjoyed with a variety of flavors, so we compiled our best recipes that make for tasty and satisfying dinners. From classic chicken alfredo and shrimp scampi to convenient pasta skillets and casseroles, these meals have four- and five-star ratings, so you're guaranteed to put a delicious dish on the table. Recipes like our Rigatoni Amatriciana and Slow-Cooker Vegetable Lasagna are fan-favorites for a reason.

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Rigatoni Amatriciana

Created by chef Fabio Viviani of Siena Tavern in Chicago, this Amatriciana sauce is a classic of modern Roman cooking (though it most likely came from the town of Amatrice about 90 miles away). Typically, it's made with few ingredients: garlic, guanciale (cured pork jowl), cheese and tomato. This version doctors up jarred sauce to keep it quick and calls for easy-to-find pancetta in place of the guanciale. This tomato sauce is sometimes paired with bucatini; here, Fabio dresses up rigatoni with it.

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Lemony Spaghetti with Parmesan & Thyme

lemony spaghetti with parmesan and thyme — Brie Passano

This simple lemony spaghetti with Parmesan and thyme is delicious on its own or jazzed up with leftover cooked chicken or veggies.

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Slow-Cooker Vegetable Lasagna

This vegetarian lasagna couldn't be easier, thanks to jarred pasta sauce and no-boil lasagna noodles. Prep it in the morning and let your crock pot do the work.

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One-Pot Lemon-Broccoli Pasta with Parmesan

overhead shot of brown bowl filled with rotini pasta, broccoli, parmesan and lemon slices

This hearty pasta dish with bright, fresh flavor is ideal for busy weeknights. The Parmesan adds welcome saltiness and notes of umami and you get added texture from the slight crunch of broccoli and whole-wheat noodles. Add some shredded rotisserie chicken, grilled shrimp or crispy chickpeas to punch up the protein.

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One-Pot Chicken Alfredo

This creamy, cheesy chicken fettuccine Alfredo isn't all that fancy, but it's incredibly comforting. You'll taste a nice pop of pepper and nutty notes from the whole-wheat pasta. Best part about this recipe? It's a one-pot meal, which means fewer dishes for you!

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Chicken, Peppers & Pasta Casserole

You can assemble this healthy chicken casserole before you leave for a party and pop it in the oven at the host's house. Or bake it at home and bring it along--it's delicious at room temperature too.

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Fresh Pasta with Quick Bolognese Sauce

fresh pasta with quick bolognese sauce

Bolognese is not your average spaghetti sauce--it's known for its richness that's developed through a slow cooking process--but on a weeknight, it's not practical. This version speeds up the classic Italian recipe for a quick and easy Bolognese sauce with Italian sausage to build flavors fast. The cooking time is about 35 minutes for this mind-blowing pasta sauce. If you don't have Grana Padano cheese, Parmesan works just as well in a pinch.

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Skillet Mac & Cheese with Zucchini & Pimiento

Zucchini-Pimiento Skillet Mac & Cheese — Jacob Fox

Sweet and mild pimiento peppers add a little zest to this skillet mac and cheese, while zucchini boosts the veggie count. Here we boil the pasta a little less than usual, until just shy of al dente, so it doesn't overcook in the oven.

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One-Pot Chicken & Broccoli Pasta

One-Pot Chicken & Broccoli Pasta — Jennifer Causey

This creamy chicken and broccoli pasta makes for a quick and easy weeknight dinner. We opt for small shells in this recipe, but any other small pasta, like orecchiette, would work, too.

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Gnocchi with Truffle Parmesan Sauce

This gnocchi recipe was created by chef Fabio Viviani of Siena Tavern in Chicago. No need for homemade gnocchi when you can dress up store-bought pasta with this special sauce. A bit of truffle oil is the magic ingredient that turns pillowy gnocchi into an extraordinary dish with minimal effort. You can find it in most well-stocked supermarkets near other flavored oils.

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Springtime Cacio e Pepe

"Cacio e pepe" means "cheese and pepper" in Italian. This spaghetti dish, with fresh asparagus and baby arugula, is flavored with "cacio e pepe" and a little lemon zest. It's simple to prepare and on the table in just 25 minutes.

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Ground Beef & Pasta Skillet

Add extra vegetables to your day with this easy one-skillet pasta recipe. Finely chop mushrooms to resemble the texture of ground beef and stir them into a classic meat sauce for a healthy twist on a dinnertime favorite.

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Crispy Gnocchi Pasta with Tomatoes & Leeks

These gnocchi are crispy on the outside, tender on the inside because you sauté them in hot oil. Plus, they leave a little fond (crispy brown bits) in the pan that adds toasty flavor to the tomato and leek sauce, which is cooked in the same pan. Since this easy gnocchi recipe calls for store-bought shelf-stable gnocchi, it's quick to prepare--just 20 minutes, start to finish. Opt for whole-wheat gnocchi to get 2 extra grams of fiber per serving compared to white. This easy and healthy dinner is easy to customize too: see Tips for variations with shrimp, pesto instead of butter, and pork chops instead of gnocchi.

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Shrimp Scampi

Shrimp Scampi

Shrimp scampi is a favorite dish at many Italian restaurants but our version takes just 20 minutes to prepare, so it's perfect for a weeknight dinner at home. Large shrimp are cooked with garlic and then served over linguine pasta with a buttery-wine sauce.

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Creamy One-Pot Orecchiette with Sausage & Peas

One-Pot Orecchiette with Sausage & Peas — Photographer / Brie Passano, Food Stylist / Annie Probst

This easy one-pot pasta recipe earns the title "creamy" thanks to the addition of sour cream and Parmesan, which combine to create a savory cheese sauce that clings to the orecchiette, peas and sausage. The best part about this recipe is that it only requires one vessel to cook everything—pasta included. By using the exact amount of liquid you need to cook the pasta, the starch that usually gets drained off with your pasta water stays in the pot, adding even more creaminess. If you like spicy but not too spicy, use a mix of sweet and hot Italian sausages.

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Skillet Lasagna

skillet lasagna — William Dickey

This skillet lasagna takes the hard work of layering the noodles, filling and cheese out of the picture and turns lasagna into a super-easy weeknight meal.

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Ham & Chard Stuffed Shells

In this healthy stuffed shells recipe, tons of dark leafy chard replaces some of the cheese. Kale and/or collards are good substitutes for the chard as well. Serve with a salad with Italian vinaigrette.

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Pasta Puttanesca with Beef

This easy slow cooker ground beef and pasta recipe makes a great meal any night of the week.

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Tortellini Salad

A tomato-rich dressing boosts the flavor and lowers calories and fat in this tortellini salad (the dressing is also great on green salads or grilled fish). Roasted red peppers, artichoke hearts and sun-dried tomatoes add a good dose of vitamins A, C and fiber.

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Turkey, Pasta & Vegetable Soup

This simple, clean turkey soup is full of vegetables and shredded turkey, making it perfect for after the holidays when you have leftovers on hand. Don't forget to save your Parmesan rinds! Adding one to a soup like this adds a rich umami flavor.

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Pesto Ravioli with Spinach & Tomatoes

This easy ravioli recipe calls for just five ingredients but is loaded with fresh flavors. By using grape tomatoes, prewashed spinach and prepared pesto, we eliminate all prep work, making this 15-minute Caprese-inspired ravioli the ideal weeknight meal.

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Roasted Brussels Sprouts Pasta with Lemon

Roasted Brussels Sprouts Pasta with Lemon — Jennifer Causey

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.

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Creamy Fettuccine with Brussels Sprouts & Mushrooms

containers

Sliced Brussels sprouts and mushrooms cook quickly and cling to the pasta in our fall version of pasta primavera. Look for presliced mushrooms to cut prep time. Serve with a tossed salad.

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Quick Shrimp Puttanesca

Because refrigerated fresh pasta made with a pasta maker cooks much faster than dried pasta, this Italian-inspired pasta dish will be on the table lickety-split! Puttanesca, traditionally made with tomatoes, olives, capers, anchovies and garlic, gets shrimp for extra protein and artichoke hearts to boost the vegetable servings (and the fiber!). If you can't find frozen artichoke hearts, sub in drained canned artichoke hearts.

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Gnocchi with Bacon & Creamy Pumpkin Sauce

Get into the fall spirit with this one-pan gnocchi with a creamy pumpkin sauce. Some pumpkin and other squash sauces can be cloyingly sweet, but not this one--it's savory all the way, thanks to the bacon, garlic and thyme. Instead of being boiled, a package of store-bought gnocchi--one of our favorite convenience products--is browned and crisped in a little bit of bacon fat. Then the sauce (made with canned pumpkin--another great convenience product) is prepared right in that same pan, so cleanup is minimal too. Serve with a simple green salad for an easy dinner that comes together in 30 minutes.

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20-Minute Balsamic Mushroom & Spinach Pasta

20-Minute Balsamic Mushroom & Spinach Pasta — Antonis Achilleos

This 20-minute veggie pasta dish is super savory, thanks to meaty mushrooms, while the natural sweetness from the balsamic vinegar, basil and pistachios brighten up this quick, healthy vegetarian dinner.

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Spinach & Artichoke Dip Pasta

If you've ever wanted to make a meal out of warm spinach and artichoke dip, this creamy pasta is for you. And here's what's almost as good as the flavor of this comforting dish: the fact that this healthy dinner takes just 20 minutes to prepare.

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Tortellini Primavera

Tortellini Primavera — Diana Chistruga

This creamy tortellini and vegetable pasta is a real crowd pleaser. To make it even quicker, use frozen chopped vegetables instead of fresh. Serve with: A green salad and whole-grain baguette.

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Chicken & Spinach Skillet Pasta with Lemon & Parmesan

Chicken & Spinach Skillet Pasta with Lemon & Parmesan

This one-pan chicken pasta combines lean chicken breast and sautéed spinach for a one-bowl meal that's garlicky, lemony and best served with a little Parm on top. I call it "Mom's Skillet Pasta" and she called it "Devon's Favorite Pasta." Either way it's a quick and easy weeknight dinner we created together and scribbled on a little recipe card more than a decade ago, and it remains in my weekly dinner rotation to this day. It's a simple dinner the whole family will love.

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Walnut Pesto Pasta Salad

This cold pesto pasta salad will cool you off on a summer day. Fresh tomatoes and roasted red peppers add a pop of bright color and juiciness here, but any of your favorite pasta-salad veggies, like blanched broccoli and fresh bell peppers, would be delicious too.

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