When I was in college, Olive Garden was Cole’s and my favorite date night restaurant. At that time, they served a mushroom ravioli with a sun dried tomato sauce. Unfortunately, the restaurant decided to replace the sauce with a creamy mushroom sauce shortly after we graduated. While the dish was still good, I missed the sun dried tomato sauce because I thought the sauce was the star of the meal. Lately, I have been craving sun dried tomato sauce, and I decided to try and replicate it. I’m super happy with the result, and it is a relatively simple recipe to make while still feeling fancy when it is done. I chose to make this recipe with chicken so Cole would like it too, but you could also serve it with salmon if you prefer fish.
*This recipe makes either two very large servings or four smaller portions which could be served with bread for a full meal.
5-6 oz Spaghetti Noodle
¼ cup Sun Dried Tomatoes in Oil
2 tbsp Minced Garlic
¼ tsp Paprika
⅛ tsp Red Pepper Flakes
½ tsp Salt
1 ½ cups Heavy Whipping Cream
6 oz Shredded Chicken Breast or Salmon
4 cups Spinach
1. Fill a large kettle ¾ full, then start the water boiling before working on the sauce.
2. Most sun-dried tomatoes come in 7 oz jars. Drain the oil out of the jar, put the tomatoes in a blender, and blend them into smaller pieces. Measure out ¼ cup and put the rest in the freezer packaged in Ziploc bags.
3. Start to boil the noodles according to the box directions, break the noodles in half before placing them in the boiling water. It is important to start the noodles before the sauce because it is essential that the sauce does not cook too long. If it overcooks, the cream and oil will separate from each other. 10 minutes of simmering is sufficient.
Kitchen Tip: If you prefer your pasta to have extra sauce, make 5 oz of spaghetti, but if you are fine with a normal amount of sauce and want to serve four people more easily, you could make 6 oz instead.
4. Put the tomatoes, garlic, and seasonings in a small saucepan and saute them over medium heat.
Kitchen Tip: Because the tomatoes were packaged with oil, no extra butter or oil should be needed to keep these ingredients from burning. Even with draining the oil before blending them, there will still be plenty of oil left in the tomatoes to keep them from burning.
5. Add in the whipping cream and whisk the ingredients together. Allow it to very lightly simmer until it thickens. Do not let it simmer for more than 10 minutes, and stir it occasionally so it does not come to a full boil. If it starts to boil, turn down the heat and whisk it vigorously until it reaches a simmer instead.
Pictured above is what the sauce should look like after 10 minutes of boiling.
6. After the noodles are done boiling, strain the spaghetti then put the noodles back into the kettle on low heat, mix in the shredded chicken, and pour in the sauce. Finally, pour in the spinach and stir it until it wilts into the dish.
Kitchen Tip: If you prefer salmon instead of chicken, cook the salmon according to my Salmon Alfredo recipe, then shred the cooked filet in place of the chicken.
Serving Size Notes: Since this recipe makes only 4 smaller portions, you may want to double it if you have a large family. Recipes that have a whipping cream base can be doubled, but the sauce may need a slightly longer simmer time to thicken if there is more liquid in the sauce pan.
Reheating instructions: If you have leftovers, be cautious with how you reheat this dish. Since whipping cream separates easily, it is best to reheat this on the stove over low heat instead of in the microwave. This will help to preserve the texture and integrity of the sauce.
After creating this recipe, I think I like sun dried tomato sauce better than both Alfredo and marinara sauce. Also, if you are a garlic lover, this is the recipe for you! With two whole tablespoons of minced garlic, the garlic flavor really comes through and mixes wonderfully with the tomato.
Looking for a great bread recipe to make as a side? Try my French Bread recipe!
December 16, 2023
Spaghetti with Sun Dried Tomato Sauce – Soup's On with Schallock
maximios Recipes
When I was in college, Olive Garden was Cole’s and my favorite date night restaurant. At that time, they served a mushroom ravioli with a sun dried tomato sauce. Unfortunately, the restaurant decided to replace the sauce with a creamy mushroom sauce shortly after we graduated. While the dish was still good, I missed the sun dried tomato sauce because I thought the sauce was the star of the meal. Lately, I have been craving sun dried tomato sauce, and I decided to try and replicate it. I’m super happy with the result, and it is a relatively simple recipe to make while still feeling fancy when it is done. I chose to make this recipe with chicken so Cole would like it too, but you could also serve it with salmon if you prefer fish.
*This recipe makes either two very large servings or four smaller portions which could be served with bread for a full meal.
5-6 oz Spaghetti Noodle
¼ cup Sun Dried Tomatoes in Oil
2 tbsp Minced Garlic
¼ tsp Paprika
⅛ tsp Red Pepper Flakes
½ tsp Salt
1 ½ cups Heavy Whipping Cream
6 oz Shredded Chicken Breast or Salmon
4 cups Spinach
1. Fill a large kettle ¾ full, then start the water boiling before working on the sauce.
2. Most sun-dried tomatoes come in 7 oz jars. Drain the oil out of the jar, put the tomatoes in a blender, and blend them into smaller pieces. Measure out ¼ cup and put the rest in the freezer packaged in Ziploc bags.
3. Start to boil the noodles according to the box directions, break the noodles in half before placing them in the boiling water. It is important to start the noodles before the sauce because it is essential that the sauce does not cook too long. If it overcooks, the cream and oil will separate from each other. 10 minutes of simmering is sufficient.
Kitchen Tip: If you prefer your pasta to have extra sauce, make 5 oz of spaghetti, but if you are fine with a normal amount of sauce and want to serve four people more easily, you could make 6 oz instead.
4. Put the tomatoes, garlic, and seasonings in a small saucepan and saute them over medium heat.
Kitchen Tip: Because the tomatoes were packaged with oil, no extra butter or oil should be needed to keep these ingredients from burning. Even with draining the oil before blending them, there will still be plenty of oil left in the tomatoes to keep them from burning.
5. Add in the whipping cream and whisk the ingredients together. Allow it to very lightly simmer until it thickens. Do not let it simmer for more than 10 minutes, and stir it occasionally so it does not come to a full boil. If it starts to boil, turn down the heat and whisk it vigorously until it reaches a simmer instead.
Pictured above is what the sauce should look like after 10 minutes of boiling.
6. After the noodles are done boiling, strain the spaghetti then put the noodles back into the kettle on low heat, mix in the shredded chicken, and pour in the sauce. Finally, pour in the spinach and stir it until it wilts into the dish.
Kitchen Tip: If you prefer salmon instead of chicken, cook the salmon according to my Salmon Alfredo recipe, then shred the cooked filet in place of the chicken.
Serving Size Notes: Since this recipe makes only 4 smaller portions, you may want to double it if you have a large family. Recipes that have a whipping cream base can be doubled, but the sauce may need a slightly longer simmer time to thicken if there is more liquid in the sauce pan.
Reheating instructions: If you have leftovers, be cautious with how you reheat this dish. Since whipping cream separates easily, it is best to reheat this on the stove over low heat instead of in the microwave. This will help to preserve the texture and integrity of the sauce.
After creating this recipe, I think I like sun dried tomato sauce better than both Alfredo and marinara sauce. Also, if you are a garlic lover, this is the recipe for you! With two whole tablespoons of minced garlic, the garlic flavor really comes through and mixes wonderfully with the tomato.
Looking for a great bread recipe to make as a side? Try my French Bread recipe!