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Easy Healthy Dinner Recipe: Spaghetti Pic Pac (Picchi Pacchiu)

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If you’re looking for an easy healthy dinner recipe, Spaghetti Pic Pac is a delicious low calorie, Mediterranean dish that’s family-friendly! It’s packed with wholesome ingredients! It also satisfies our craving for pasta or Italian dishes!

collage of two pictures of the healthy dinner recipe - text overlay in the middle says simple italian spaghetti pic pac ready in 30 minutes

Pic Pac is short for Picchi Pacchiu which is a phrase used in Sicily. It means “fast or quick.” That’s exactly what this mouthwatering dinner recipe is!

It uses just a handful for ingredients and is ready in 30 minutes!

Plus, if you have a smaller family like ours, you’ll likely have enough for leftovers! We just store the leftover pasta in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 5 days!

Want to learn more about the Mediterranean Diet? Check out our Free Mediterranean Quick Start Guide!

Spaghetti Pic Pac Ingredients

  • 1 pound angel hair pasta or spaghetti
  • 5-6 large cloves garlic (approximately ½ cup) sliced
  • 1/2 Cup Extra Virgin Olive Oil (or enough to coat the bottom of your skillet well)
  • 2 28oz cans of whole peeled plum tomatoes (We prefer Cento San Marzano Tomatoes)
  • Black pepper to taste
  • Salt to taste
  • Red Pepper flakes to taste
  • 6-8 large fresh basil leaves
  • Pecorino Romano or Parmesan cheese

making the sauce in the skillet

How to Make This Easy Healthy Dinner Recipe

  1.  Coat your skillet well with extra virgin olive oil. This is important to your sauce so don’t go skimpy with just barely covering it.
  2. Sauté your garlic slices on medium high heat approximately 30 to 60 secs. You’ll start to smell them…so yummy. They should be slightly golden.
  3. Add your tomatoes.
  4. Sprinkle in pepper, salt, and red pepper flakes.
  5. Tear your fresh basil leaves & stir into sauce.
  6. Let this cook for 15-20 minutes smashing the tomatoes as it cooks. They will get softer as they cook, and you’ll be  able to smash them up well. It’s ok to still have small chunks.
  7. As your sauce cooks, cook your pasta by following the package instructions.
  8. Finish by draining your noodles and then tossing into sauce.
  9. Serve with Pecorino Romano or Parmesan cheese if you like.

spaghetti pic pac on a plate

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Can you add a meat to this?

Yes, you could add chicken or fish to Spaghetti Pic Pac. We just chose to keep it a meatless meal option because it saves on time and money!

What do you pair Spaghetti Pic Pac with?

We love it with a slice or two of sourdough bread with a little olive oil on it. If you’re a wine drinker, we also love Avaline Cabernet Sauvignon with this dish!

Avaline’s wines are all very clean and contain no added sugar. You can check out our full Avaline review or get $25 off your first order here.

info graphic for spaghetti pic pac

Yield: 10

Spaghetti Pic Pac (Picchi Pacchiu)

spaghetti pic pac on a plate

Satisfy your Italian cravings with this low-calorie Mediterranean dish! This is our go-to healthy dinner recipe that is ready in just 30 minutes!

Prep Time 10 minutes
Cook Time 20 minutes
Total Time 30 minutes

Ingredients

  • 1 pound angel hair pasta or spaghetti
  • 5-6 large cloves garlic (approximately ½ cup) sliced
  • 1/2 Cup Extra Virgin Olive Oil (or enough to coat the bottom of your skillet well)
  • 2 28oz cans of whole peeled plum tomatoes (We prefer Cento San Marzano Tomatoes)
  • Black pepper to taste
  • Salt to taste
  • Red Pepper flakes to taste
  • 6-8 large fresh basil leaves
  • Pecorino Romano or Parmesan cheese

Instructions

  1. Coat your skillet well with extra virgin olive oil. This is important to your sauce so don’t go skimpy with just barely covering it.
  2. Sauté your garlic slices on medium high heat approximately 30 to 60 secs. You’ll start to smell them…so yummy. They should be slightly golden.
  3. Add your tomatoes.
  4. Sprinkle in pepper, salt, and red pepper flakes.
  5. Tear your fresh basil leaves & stir into sauce.
  6. Let this cook for 15-20 minutes smashing the tomatoes as it cooks. They will get softer as they cook, and you’ll be  able to smash them up well. It’s ok to still have small chunks.
  7. As your sauce cooks, cook your pasta by following the package instructions.
  8. Finish by draining your noodles and then tossing into sauce.
  9. Serve with Pecorino Romano or Parmesan cheese if you like.

Nutrition Information:

Yield:

10

Serving Size:

1

Amount Per Serving: Calories: 231Total Fat: 13gSaturated Fat: 2gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 10gCholesterol: 3mgSodium: 122mgCarbohydrates: 25gNet Carbohydrates: 22gFiber: 3gSugar: 5gProtein: 6g

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 If you love this easy healthy dinner recipe, we also share new healthy recipes on our Instagram each week!

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Love this recipe? Get 50% off our Mediterranean eBook with more recipes and tips with code KIMANDKALEE.

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