Try this baked feta pasta for an easy weeknight meal filled with veggies, spice and creamy feta cheese. Serve it with your favorite protein for a well-rounded dinner!
Baked Feta Pasta with Harissa
The baked feta pasta trend that swarmed the internet a couple of years ago is one that’s never left my dinner rotation- and for good reason. It’s easy to make, fully customizable, and packs in so much flavor. It’s a simple yet nourishing recipe made by roasting chopped veggies and feta cheese to create a delicious pasta sauce.
Chopped peppers, onion and garlic are roasted with a block of feta, harissa and spices until soft, then mixed together with spinach and cooked pasta. It’s a low effort dinner that can be flavored in so many ways!
Originally, this recipe was made using cherry tomatoes and feta cheese, but I personally love the variation with peppers and onion. They add delicious texture to this dish, with some added heat from the harissa.
What you’ll need to make baked feta pasta
I use minimal ingredients for this recipe that can easily be altered to your liking. Here’s what you’ll need:
- Cooked pasta- I used Ditali pasta but any variety would work
- Feta cheese– or substitute goat cheese
- Veggies– I used red pepper, red onion and spinach. You can also throw in some cherry tomatoes
- Harissa– or tomato paste for a less spicy version
- Spices– salt, pepper, red pepper flakes and Italian seasoning
- Olive oil
- Start by preparing your pasta as instructed on the package. Reserve some of the pasta water, drain and set aside.
- Add the chopped peppers, onion and garlic to a baking dish and toss them with olive oil, harissa and your spices. Place the block of fete cheese in the center of the dish and drizzle with olive oil and the Italian seasoning
- Bake on 400 F for about 35 minutes, until the veggies and feta cheese have softened
- Remove the dish from the oven and mash the feta cheese into the veggies creating a sauce. Add in the pasta water, spinach and cooked pasta and toss everything to combine
This recipe is a go-to when I need to clear out the fridge of any wilted veggies.
I love serving it warm for dinner with a side of my lemon herb salmon skewers or lemon butter fish. Enjoy the leftovers cold or warmed- they make for the best meal prep for busy work days!
This recipe is so simple and delicious, you guys are going to love it! You can tag me on Instagram if you try it 🙂
More pasta recipes you’ll love:
Asparagus Pesto Pasta with Burrata
Roasted Beet Pasta
Tahini Pasta Stir-fry
Baked Feta Pasta with Harissa
Ingredients
- 8 oz pasta of choice, I used Ditali pasta
- 1/4 cup reserved pasta water
- 8 oz block of feta cheese
- 1 red bell pepper
- 1/2 red onion
- 4 garlic cloves, sliced
- 1 cup spinach, chopped
- 1 tbsp harissa
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1/2 tsp black pepper
- 1/4 tsp red pepper flakes
- 1/4 tsp Italian seasoning
- Olive oil
Directions
- Preheat the oven to 400 F.
- Chop the pepper into 1 ” pieces and dice the onion. Add them to a large baking dish with the sliced garlic, harissa, salt, pepper and red pepper flakes. Drizzle generously with olive oil and toss everything together until combined.
- Place the block of feta in the center of the dish. Top with the Italian seasoning and a light drizzle of olive oil.
- Bake for 30-35 minutes, until the veggies and feta have softened.
- Prepare the pasta as instructed on the package and reserve 1/4 cup of pasta water. Drain and set aside.
- Once the veggie are done, remove the baking dish from the oven and mash the feta down, mixing it together with the veggies to form the sauce.
- Add in the reserved pasta water, spinach and cooked pasta and mix well until evenly combined.
- Serve warm with your favorite protein.
Thanks for posting this recipe! I made it tonight with a few small additions and it was delicious! I had some uncooked harissa marinated chicken cubes so I added it half way through the bake. I also added cherry tomatoes to the peppers and onions. So good! Will definitely make again.
That sounds delicious! I’m so happy you tried it 🙂