Lemon Chicken and Spinach Pasta
Tender pieces of chicken in a creamy and indulgent lemon and spinach sauce, served with tagliatelle pasta. Ideal for calorie counting and Weight Watchers!
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NutritionPer Serving
- Calories276
- Carbs29g
- Protein27g
- Fat5.1g
- Saturates2.3g
- Sugars1.5g
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For the full list of ingredients and comprehensive instructions, please see the recipe card at the end of this post. Before you scroll, there’s important stuff to know in the blurb!
With an indulgent, creamy sauce, this quick and easy Lemon Chicken and Spinach pasta is a delicious dinner that you can pull together in only 40 minutes!
We’ve packed this comforting pasta dish with spinach for extra nutrition with the fresh tangy hint of lemon.
Light spreadable cheese is essential in this dish, as you get a velvety texture and taste, without a pot of cream in sight! You save so many calories and fat compared to double cream.
We’ve used tagliatelle as we think it works well for mopping up creamy sauces, but you could swap out for your preferred pasta shape. Try penne or farfalle, or whatever you have in the cupboard!
What diets is this Lemon Chicken and Spinach Pasta suitable for?
This Lemon Chicken and Spinach Pasta are suitable for gluten free diets as long as you swap out the following ingredients for gluten free versions;
- Pasta
- stock cube
Please make sure to double or triple check all of your ingredients if you’re cooking for people with allergies.
Do you need any special ingredients to make Lemon Chicken and Spinach Pasta?
All of the ingredients are simple and easy to find in most supermarkets!
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How many calories are in this Lemon Chicken and Spinach Pasta recipe?
There are 276 calories per portion of Lemon Chicken and Spinach Pasta which means it falls into our Everyday Light category.
This Lemon Chicken and Spinach Pasta is perfect if you’re following a calorie controlled diet and fits well with any one of the major diet plans such as Weight Watchers.
As a guide, an average man needs around 2,500kcal (10,500kJ) a day to maintain a healthy body weight. For an average woman, that figure is around 2,000kcal (8,400kJ) a day. Obviously, if your goal is to lose weight then you might want to adjust these slightly! You can read more about these recommendations on the NHS website.
Step 1
Spray a frying pan with low-calorie cooking spray and fry the chicken for 5-10 min on a medium heat, until golden brown.
Step 2
Add the garlic and cook for another minute. Stir the stock cube into the boiling water then add to the pan along with the lemon juice and thyme and cook for 3-5 minutes.
Step 3
While the chicken is cooking, cook the pasta according to packet instructions and drain. This can be from 9-12 minutes depending on the brand.
Step 4
Add the light spreadable cheese to the stock and mix well.
Step 5
Then add the spinach, black pepper, pasta and mix into the sauce. Cook for a further minute.
Step 6
Season to taste with salt and black pepper, and sprinkle with parmesan before serving.
What could I serve with Lemon Chicken and Spinach Pasta?
It’s a filling and comforting dish on it’s own, but you could make it go further by halving the portion and serving alongside a crisp, fresh salad or one of our other sides:
How do you know when Lemon Chicken and Spinach Pasta is cooked?
The chicken should be cooked through and tender, and the light spreadable cheese should have completely melted. This will take around 30 minutes in total.
Standard advice here in the UK is to cook food until it has reached 70°C and stayed at that temperature for 2 minutes. This is to keep your family safe.
How long can you keep Lemon Chicken and Spinach Pasta in the fridge?
Ideally you should eat it within 4 hours.
If you allow any leftovers to cool, make sure to refrigerate in a container with a lid and chill. You can keep leftover Lemon Chicken and Spinach Pasta in the fridge for 2-3 days or so.
Can I freeze this Lemon Chicken and Spinach Pasta?
Yes you can! This recipe can be frozen, but please remember to do the following;
- Allow to cool thoroughly before freezing and freeze as soon as it’s cold enough.
- Use a container or bag that is suitable for freezing.
Don’t forget to add a label with what it is, and on what date you put it in the freezer!
How do I reheat Lemon Chicken and Spinach Pasta?
Defrost thoroughly in the fridge overnight. To reheat, add 1-2 tbsp of water and then microwave on full power for 3-5 minutes until piping hot, stirring halfway.
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Lemon Chicken and Spinach Pasta
Tender pieces of chicken in a creamy and indulgent lemon and spinach sauce, served with tagliatelle pasta. Ideal for calorie counting and Weight Watchers!
-
Prep Time
10 MINS
-
Cook Time
30 MINS
- KCals 276
- Carbs 29G
Instructions
- Spray a frying pan with low-calorie cooking spray and fry the chicken for 5-10 min on a medium heat, until golden brown.
- Add the garlic and cook for another minute. Stir the stock cube into the boiling water then add to the pan along with the lemon juice and thyme and cook for 3-5 minutes.
- While the chicken is cooking, cook the pasta according to packet instructions and drain. This can be from 9-12 minutes depending on the brand.
- Add the light spreadable cheese to the stock and mix well.
- Then add the spinach, black pepper, pasta and mix into the sauce. Cook for a further minute.
- Season to taste with salt and black pepper.
- Sprinkle with parmesan before serving.
Looking for Slimming World Syns or Weight Watchers (WW) Points?
With ever-changing plans and point calculations, we have made the decision to remove WW Points from the website - referring to your individual plan or advice from your consultant is always going to give the most accurate results.
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18 comments
See what others have to say
TaySunday 30th July 2023
is the 150g dried pasta weighed cooked or uncooked? for calorie counting reasons!
SharonThursday 19th October 2023
Hi Tay, the 150g dried tagliatelle is the uncooked weight. Enjoy the recipe!
MarieSaturday 9th April 2022
Omg this was amazing! I did find the pasta amount was a little small, so I used around 200g of pasta and an extra 50ml of hot water for 3 people. I also used dairylea triangles and added half an extra triangle. (Calories all adjusted accordingly)
Kids loved this, even hubby had a fry and said he wants it next time I make it! Bonus!!
HollyMonday 11th April 2022
Hey Marie, so glad to hear you and your family enjoyed this recipe, the extra cheese sounds great too!
KLMSunday 13th February 2022
150g pasta for 4 people? I know my sense of ‘enough’ may be off because I’m regularly feeding an ever starving teenager, but most of the packages of pasta in my cupboard list a single serving as 200g and even macaroni allows 75g, so half of that seems quite skimpy?
HollyWednesday 16th February 2022
Hi Karen, we think this recipe is perfect to serve 4 however if you feel the portions aren’t quite right for you you could serve with an accompaniment or double up the ingredients and alter the calories accordingly. Hope that helps!
Lou HaSunday 18th July 2021
Would it be possible to switch the turmeric for something else as I really don’t like it?
LisaTuesday 20th July 2021
Hi Lou, you could use saffron, but that is a pricy option! Otherwise, just leave the turmeric out. The lemon and thyme will still give you a great flavour. Hope this helps.
NicolaTuesday 22nd June 2021
What cheese do you use in this recipe? It looks like cream cheese but someone mentioned dairylea? Just trying to work out so I can adjust calories
HollyMonday 28th June 2021
Hey Nicola, we used light Primula for this recipe but any light spreadable cheese will work such as GoGo’s or there is also Cathedral City Spreadable Light. Hope that helps!
SharonThursday 10th June 2021
This is absolutely delicious. I made it extra lemony by using the zest of the 2 lemon too. Will be a regular in my house
HollyFriday 11th June 2021
Hey Sharon, thanks so much for your message we are so glad to hear you enjoyed this recipe!
Sheila DeeksSaturday 17th April 2021
Would Philadelphia be better; the Dairylea didn’t see to melt as well as it should. Is it OK to use a Knorr Stockpot instead of a stock cube considering I halved all the ingredients, it being just for 2 people.
HollyMonday 19th April 2021
Hey Shelia, you could swap the light spreadable cheese for a light cream cheese if you prefer and the same with the chicken stock cube for stock pot and alter the calories accordingly. Hope that helps!
Zena DawsonSunday 3rd January 2021
Would frozen spinach work in this recipe ? And the Tuscan chicken ? As I find anytime I buy fresh spinach, half of it is thrown out. Thanks
HollyMonday 4th January 2021
Hi Zena, Yes frozen will work fine just defrost it and squeeze out as much of the water as possible. Hope that helps!
Christine CassinelliTuesday 29th December 2020
From the new quick and easy book would it be possible to get Ww points please
LisaThursday 31st December 2020
Hi Christine
You might find this article from our website helpful
https://pinchofnom.com/how-to-work-out-calories-and-points-in-a-recipe/
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