This Sun-Dried Tomato and Artichoke Pasta recipe is perfect for a busy weeknight dinner. It is packed with Mediterranean flavors, incredibly simple and ready in about 20 minutes.
Whether you are rushing to get the kids settled after school or trying to find a moment to connect with your partner after a busy day of work, it seems there is never enough time in the evening. This recipe is an attempt to solve that dinnertime rush by incorporating convenience ingredients in a delicious one-skillet pasta. And this recipe is super versatile and easy to adjust: leave out the anchovies to make it vegetarian, add a can of white beans to boost the protein, or stir in cooked chicken or shrimp for a big boost of flavor.
I cook pasta at least once (or twice!) a week for my family. Sometimes it seems pasta is the only thing my daughters will eat. With that in mind, I developed this recipe to please both kids and grownups. My wife and I love all the flavors in this recipe, including garlic, anchovies, sun-dried tomatoes and olives, while my daughters will pick out the things they don't like, but in general they try everything on their plate. If you are looking for more kid-friendly pasta recipes, check out this Creamy Spinach Pasta or this cheesy Rigatoni Al Forno recipe.
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Ingredients that Matter
This pasta recipe uses a lot of convenience ingredients (like jarred sun-dried tomatoes and artichoke hearts) to make for a super simple and delicious skillet pasta. Here are the ingredients you'll need to make this recipe.
- Sun-Dried Tomatoes. You can find a few different types of packaged sun-dried tomatoes at grocery stores (at least here in the U.S.). There are sun-dried tomatoes sold in bulk or packaging without any other ingredients. I use these on salads and as snacks. But the best type are oil-packed sun-dried tomatoes. That is because the sun-dried tomatoes are plump and juicy and we'll use that oil in the sauce.
- Artichokes. You could start with fresh artichokes, peel off the leaves, cut out the choke and chop, but that is quite time consuming! Instead we'll use jarred or canned artichoke hearts packed in water. Drain, rinse and dry them well before using. In a pinch, use frozen artichoke hearts and be sure to thaw and dry them well.
- Pasta. Use your favorite pasta shape, but I suggest using a shape that will hold the sauce. Pictured above is gemelli, but other shapes that would work well include farfalle, fusilli, campanelle, or orecchiette.
- Aromatics. The onion and garlic are here simply to provide aromatic flavor. I like to cut the garlic into slices for this recipe for a brighter garlic flavor, but feel free to grate or mince of for bolder flavor.
- Anchovies. This ingredient is optional (I recognize not everyone can get behind anchovies), but I suggest using it simply for its umami flavor. The sauce will not taste fishy! Instead, it the anchovies provide a complex salty flavor that's hard to replicate simply by adding salt.
- Olives. Use your favorite olive. I like castelvetrano olives in this recipe, but you can also use kalamata, liguria or manzanilla. Simply roughly chop the olives and you are ready to go.
- Olive Oil. I like to use extra-virgin olive oil in this recipe for its bright and fruity flavor.
- White Wine. The skillet is deglazed with a dry white wine, which provides lots of flavor to the sauce. Use whatever dry white wine you prefer, including pinot gris, chanin blanc, sauvignon blanc or even chardonnay (i don't recommend using an oaky white wine, however).
- Ricotta Salata. This Italian cheese is made with sheep milk. Unlike ricotta, which is a soft, scoopable cheese, ricotta salata is firm and crumbly. It has a salty flavor that goes quite well with sun-dried tomatoes and artichokes. You could use parmesan cheese in a pinch.
- Parsley. Finish the pasta with a handful of chopped fresh parsley to help brighten the dish.
See recipe card for quantities.
Instructions
This recipe comes together in about 20 minutes. It's quite simple and there's plenty of room to tweak the recipe, but, here's how I like to make it:
Heat oil in a large skillet over medium. Add sliced garlic and anchovies and cook until fragrant, about 2 minutes.
Stir in finely chopped onion and cook until translucent, about 3 minutes. Add sliced sun-dried tomatoes along with 1 tablespoon of the oil from the sun-dried tomato jar.
Stir in the olives and artichokes and cook until fragrant, another 1-2 minutes.
Deglaze the skillet with white wine and cook until mostly evaporated, about 2 minutes. Reserve 1 cup of the pasta cooking liquid.
Add pasta to the skillet and toss to combine. Add some of the reserved cooking liquid and continue to toss until the mixture is slightly saucy. Stir in chopped parsley.
Remove from heat and top with crumbled ricotta salata and sprinkle with more parsley. Serve immediately.
Hint: Ladle out about 1 cup of the pasta cooking liquid just before straining. This liquid is packed with starch that, when added to the skillet, will help create a velvety sauce.
Substitutions
This recipe is very easy to adjust based on your dietary needs or restrictions.
- Dairy-Free- Simply leave out the ricotta salata to make this recipe dairy-free.
- Gluten-Free - Use gluten-free pasta to make this recipe gluten-free.
- Vegetarian - Leave out the anchovies to make this recipe vegetarian.
Variations
Feel free to tweak this recipe. Try the following:
- Add Chicken or Shrimp - Stir in cooked chicken or leftover shrimp before adding the pasta and cook until heated through.
- Add White Beans - Keep the Mediterranean flavors of this recipe by adding a can of white beans (be sure to drain and rinse the beans first).
- Cream - To make this a creamy sauce, finish with ½ cup of heavy cream.
- Spicy - Add a pinch of red pepper flakes or some Calabrian chilies or pickled hot cherry peppers.
If you like spicy pasta recipes, try our Spaghetti Arrabiata recipe.
Equipment
You need a stock pot to cook the pasta and a large skillet for the sauce. I suggest a large stainless steel skillet, like this Cuisinart 12-inch Skillet with Glass Lid. For the stock pot, I like to use this Cuisinart 4-Piece Cookware Set (it includes a large pot and strainer!).
Storage
This recipe is a great make-ahead pasta dish! In fact, it tastes delicious cold as leftovers. You can turn this recipe into a sun-dried tomato and artichoke pasta salad simply by chilling the dish and adding a couple more tablespoons of olive oil before serving.
Store leftovers in an air-tight container in the refrigerator for up to 4 days. I don't recommend storing leftovers in the freezer.
Top tip
The recipe uses a full 9.9 ounce jar of artichoke hearts, but you will have leftover sun-dried tomatoes from a 7 ounce jar (which is the most common size I've found at grocery stores). Use leftover sun-dried tomatoes on salads, stirred into risotto, on our Sauteed Delicata Squash with Crispy Sage or Smothered Skillet Chicken with Artichokes and Red Peppers.
FAQ
Sun-dried tomatoes are quite a bit sweeter and tangier than fresh tomatoes.
Yes! Canned artichoke hearts are already prepared and ready to eat straight from the can or jar.
Dinner Ideas
Looking for more dinner ideas? Try these:
Pairing
If you need some sides to serve with this recipe, try these:
Print
Recipe
Sun-Dried Tomato and Artichoke Pasta
- Total Time: 20 min.
- Yield: 7 cups 1x
Description
This Sun-Dried Tomato and Artichoke Pasta recipe is perfect for a busy weeknight dinner. It is packed with Mediterranean flavors, incredibly simple and ready in about 20 minutes.
Ingredients
- 8 oz. pasta, such as gemelli or farfalle (reserve 1 cup cooking liquid)
- 2 Tbsp. extra-virgin olive oil
- 2 cloves garlic, thinly sliced
- 4 anchovies (preferably packed in oil) (optional)
- 1 small onion, finely chopped
- ½ cup oil-packed sun-dried tomatoes (from a 7 oz. jar), sliced
- 1 Tbsp. oil from jar of sun-dried tomatoes
- 1 (9.9 oz.) jar water-packed artichoke hearts, drained and roughly chopped
- ½ cup roughly chopped olives, such as Castelvetrano
- ⅓ cup dry white wine
- ⅓ cup crumbled ricotta salata cheese, plus more for garnish
- chopped parsley, for garnish
Instructions
- Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Cook pasta according to package instructions (be sure to reserve 1 cup of the cooking liquid just before straining).
- While the pasta cooks, heat oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add garlic and anchovies and cook until fragrant, about 2 minutes. Add onion and sun-dried tomatoes and cook until the onions are translucent, about 3 minutes. Add oil from sun-dried tomato jar along with artichoke hearts and olives. Cook, stirring frequently, until fragrant and hot, another 2 minutes.
- Deglaze the skillet with white wine and cook until mostly reduced, about minutes. Add pasta and toss to combine. Add some of the reserved cooking liquid and continue to stir until saucy. Add ricotta salata and toss well. Serve hot and garnish with parsley and more cheese.
Notes
- Store leftovers in an air-tight container in the refrigerator for up to 4 days.
- Turn this recipe into a sun-dried tomato and artichoke pasta salad by serving cold but add a couple more tablespoons of oil before serving.
- The anchovies are optional, but they will not create a fishy tasting sauce. Instead, the provide a bright salty flavor.
- Leave out the anchovies to make this recipe vegetarian.
- Add a protein like cooked chicken, shrimp or a can of white beans (drained and rinsed).
- Prep Time: 5 min.
- Cook Time: 15 min.
- Category: Pasta
- Method: Sautee
- Cuisine: Italian/American
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