Penne with Spinach Sauce

So, I’m not a big fan of Giada De Laurentiis of the Food Network. I can’t stand watching her, with her perma teeth grin, which makes her look like she’s always in the middle of a fluoride treatment. Or the fact that her breasts are far too big for her twig like structure, and are always on display in her low cut shirts. Has this women ever heard of a turtle neck? Anyway, I don’t particularly like watching her, but the let’s face it, the bitch can cook.

So this recipe is from the infamous De Laurentiis collection. It’s super easy and tasted great.

CB has lost a little weight due to all the manual labor he has been putting in the house at night, and also the stress associated with buying a house and selling a house at the same time. So in order to make this meal a little more beefy, I added chicken to the pasta. CB needs his protein. With the protien from the chicken and the iron from the spinach, he'll be back to popeye shape in no time.

1 pound whole wheat or multi grain penne
3 garlic cloves
2 ounces goat cheese
1 ounce reduced fat cream cheese
3/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
6 ounces fresh baby spinach leaves
2 tablespoons freshly grated Parmesan
Bring a large pot of salted water to boil. Add the penne and cook until it is tender but still firm to the bite, stirring occasionally, about 12 minutes.

Mince the garlic in a food processor. Add the goat cheese, cream cheese, 3/4 teaspoon of salt, 1/2 teaspoon of pepper, and half of the spinach leaves. Blend until the mixture is smooth and creamy. Set the cheese and spinach mixture aside.

Meanwhile, place the remaining spinach leaves in a large bowl.

Drain the pasta, reserving 1 cup of the cooking liquid. Spoon the pasta atop the spinach leaves in the bowl. Scrape the cheese and spinach mixture over the pasta mixture and toss to coat, adding enough reserved cooking liquid to moisten. Season the pasta, to taste, with salt and pepper. Sprinkle the Parmesan over and serve.