Spaghetti with yogurt sauce
This is a homestyle dish combining a little pasta and the dairy always on hand, yogurt! Not the kind of dish likely to figure on the menu of a Lebanese restaurant in Sydney or Washington or Paris, but ours nevertheless and highly ingrained in our culinary habits.
To liven up the yogurt sauce a bit of garlic and (or) cilantro or parsley pesto is added. Garnish is usually fried pine nuts.
Speedy, taking less than 15 minutes to prepare, delicious, healthy, what more can one ask for?
INGREDIENTS:
- 8 ounces of spaghetti (can substitute any other pasta)
- 4 cloves of garlic (more or less depending on taste-I tend to add more), mashed in a mortar with salt
- 1/2 bunch of cilantro, stems discarded and leaves chopped fine (can substitute parsley)
- olive oil, as needed
- 1/4 cup of pine nuts fried in a pat of butter or oil
- 12 to 16 ounces of yogurt (depending on whether you like yours on the dry side or smothered in sauce)
METHOD:
- To speed things up, mash the garlic with salt, heat some olive oil in a small skillet and fry the garlic and cilantro for thirty seconds, until the fragrance is noticeable. Set aside.
- Boil the spaghetti till done. Add a bit of olive oil to it to keep it shiny and smooth.
- Mix the cilantro pesto with the yogurt and add to the spaghetti. Sprinkle with pine nuts. Serve.
I am submitting an entry to the Presto Pasta nights #155.
Comments
52 Comments • Comments Feed
Nicole @ MGC says:
This looks like a great dish. It’s such a great idea to liven up the yogurt. Looks beautiful!
On March 15, 2010 at 6:37 pm
Christine's Recipes says:
Aw, the pasta looks fab with the creamy sauce. Haven’t used yogurt to make pasta sauce, sounds great and healthy.
On March 15, 2010 at 6:51 pm
Faith says:
This looks like such a light, flavorful, and refreshing pasta dish! I love the crunch of the pine nuts in there!
On March 15, 2010 at 7:08 pm
The Little Teochew says:
Brilliant idea! Instead of cream, it’s yogurt. I should really try this. It looks so creamy, yet so healthy. And vegetarian too. 🙂
On March 15, 2010 at 7:18 pm
peachkins says:
I love yogurts but I never thought it would go well with pasta. I wish I could taste this yummy pasta dish of yours!
On March 15, 2010 at 7:29 pm
anncoo says:
I really like this pasta, looks light and refreshing.
On March 15, 2010 at 7:56 pm
Mimi says:
What a light and fresh pasta. It doesn’t hurt that it’s fast to make either.
Mimi
On March 15, 2010 at 7:58 pm
Adele says:
Wonderful dish! Fast, easy, ingredients available, but doesn’t it look wonderful? Will definitely make this for my husband.
On March 15, 2010 at 8:00 pm
The Curious Baker says:
Snap! I was just about to go out and buy a tub of laban, truth be told I wasn’t a fan of it when I lived in Dubai but they were gulping it down like it was going out of fashion. I thought of baking with it and sweetening up a bit in a bit of an arabic nostalgia moment, but putting it on spaghetti, sounds interesting!
On March 15, 2010 at 8:12 pm
Citrus Quark says:
this looks delicious. i can’t wait to try it.
On March 15, 2010 at 10:01 pm
Sushma Mallya says:
So creamy and such a delicious spaghetti….very nice recipe to try….
On March 16, 2010 at 12:25 am
Ivy says:
Is this a Lebanese recipe Joumana? I have made pasta lots of times combining pesto with yoghurt or pesto with feta, instead of using fresh cream and it’s really great.
On March 16, 2010 at 2:50 am
Katie says:
Love this – always have yogurt in the fridge. Parsley for me, tho. Perfect side dish.
On March 16, 2010 at 3:52 am
Barbara says:
Never occurred to me to use yogurt with pasta, Joumana! And I’ve got every single one of those ingredients in my pantry or fridge right now. Can’t wait to give this healthy pasta dish a try!
On March 16, 2010 at 4:17 am
Juanita says:
Yum!
On March 16, 2010 at 4:46 am
Simply Life says:
Oh my gosh! I’m drooling over that at it’s only 8am! 🙂
On March 16, 2010 at 6:51 am
rebecca says:
looks delicious great use of yogurt going to Turkey in May have you been any tips? rebeccasubbiah at yahoo dot com
On March 16, 2010 at 7:07 am
Azita says:
great dish, delicious and healthy! what a wonderful idea! thanks.
On March 16, 2010 at 8:01 am
noobcook says:
I’ve tried pesto pasta but adding yoghurt is something new to me – and it looks really good!
On March 16, 2010 at 8:12 am
TastyTrix says:
Substituting yogurt for cream is so smart, and it gives a dish such a pop of flavor. I love this.
On March 16, 2010 at 8:19 am
Happy Cook says:
I love cilantro, but here hubby and daughte don’t love them, they do like but then as a garnish or something like that.
This looks so so good. And i love that you used youghurt.
On March 16, 2010 at 8:56 am
oum mouncifrayan says:
j’aime les salés avec du “snober”!
merci du partage!
On March 16, 2010 at 9:22 am
Arlette says:
Marhaba Joumana
I love to come here, and enjoy your food and recipe and more, to remember some of the recipes which I completely forgot since I moved here… This sauce is one of the them… I used to like it with lots of garlic…EMMMM Yummy
Shahaytini ya binit….
On March 16, 2010 at 11:19 am
Rachana Kothari says:
I do that too:) It tastes really good… Lovely clicks!
On March 16, 2010 at 11:36 am
the wicked noodle says:
I have immediately bookmarked this healthy, yummy recipe! I absolutely can not WAIT to try it!
On March 16, 2010 at 12:14 pm
Lorraine @NotQuiteNigella says:
Delicious! I’ve made something similar using an Amy Sedaris recipe and it turned out so gorgeous and creamy. Instead of pesto she used a greek cheese but I do love the idea of using yogurt for the cream 😀
On March 16, 2010 at 12:26 pm
MaryMoh says:
Simple and delicious. I love the pine nuts to go with it.
On March 16, 2010 at 2:18 pm
Natashya says:
I just made a faux alfredo last night with yogurt and we loved it. Your pasta looks wonderful! I love the liberal use of herbs.
On March 16, 2010 at 2:35 pm
chau says:
not sure if it will keep me full tho
On March 16, 2010 at 2:59 pm
sweetlife says:
I adore this-cilantro is my fav herb and the addition of yogurt-yum!!
sweetlife
On March 16, 2010 at 3:38 pm
5 Star Foodie says:
The sauce with yogurt and cilantro pesto sounds amazing, yum!
On March 16, 2010 at 4:21 pm
aurelie says:
voilà une recette de pâte comme je les aime, riche en saveurs … et en soleil …
merci pour tes visites
Bises Aurelie
On March 17, 2010 at 1:46 am
SathyaSrihdar says:
Spaghetti with pesto sauce looks delicious and creamy,,, it looks perfect with perfect snaps.thanks for sharing dear,,, take care and always keep cute smiling..
On March 17, 2010 at 3:35 am
T.W. Barritt says:
This is a lovely dish – simple ingredients and so fresh. I love these types of recipes.
On March 17, 2010 at 3:38 am
Cherine says:
I had forgotten about this dish! My mom used to make it long time ago and I used to looove it… thanks for sharing this recipe!!
On March 17, 2010 at 4:45 am
Julie says:
Des fois, c’est bon de revenir à la simplicité dans la cuisine. Les pâtes sont toujours une valeur sûre mais ta sauce a l’air vraiment très crémeuse et savoureuse, ça me tente bien!! Gros bisous!
On March 17, 2010 at 12:27 pm
Tiny Urban Kitchen says:
I love it! A creamy dish that *seems* unhealthy but isn’t at all!
On March 17, 2010 at 7:06 pm
PJ says:
As I always say-I love anything with yogurt.Looks sooooo delicious..
On March 17, 2010 at 11:14 pm
Ruth says:
What a glorious dish. The photos are fabulous and the pasta has me drooling. Thanks for sharing with Presto Pasta Nights. We’re always looking for wonderful noodle dishes so I hope you join in the fun often.
Your blog is wonderful and I’ll be back often.
On March 19, 2010 at 6:32 am
The Food Hunter says:
Looks delicious. I’ll try it!
On March 19, 2010 at 11:16 am
Elizabeth says:
This looks fabulous! I’d definitely order it if it was on the menu….
I love putting yoghurt into pasta as well – it’s great with beets, pinenuts and fennel seed…
On March 20, 2010 at 12:03 pm
Kathryn says:
Sounds very tasty! Going to put this on my “to try some time” list. Thanks for sharing this with us.
On March 21, 2010 at 1:14 am
Ann says:
I am making this tonight…will keep you posted!!
On March 25, 2010 at 5:41 pm
Mercotte says:
je découvre ton agréable blog et je le trouve très sympa de belles et simples recettes très appétissantes et originales enfin en ici avec leur petit brin d’exotisme ça fait du bien!
On May 1, 2010 at 5:58 am
TastyTrix says:
I had to tell you – I needed a quick dinner and I just made this – SO good! I had to sub sunflower seeds for pine nuts, and I sprinkled a bit of sumac on top just because. It was a hit! (And I was just teasing about you telling us where to get something … you always make me crave things, for real.)
On May 7, 2010 at 6:05 pm
Velva says:
This beautiful dish is perfect for the summer. This dish is also proof that simple is really best.
On May 26, 2010 at 2:39 pm
Zoubida says:
This was our lunch. I used german egg noodles and a balkan-style full-fat yogurt. Mmmm… We couldn’t stop eating this. It’s so good ! My sons loved it. I love it. I put it in our household weedays fast-easy-delicious cooking repertoire.
On June 14, 2010 at 6:28 pm
Michelle says:
I made this for lunch a few days ago and really, really loved it! I used full-fat Greek yogurt so it was a little more indulgent but totally worth it. I also used whole wheat spaghetti. So good, creamy and flavorful! Love the garlic, cilantro and pine nuts flavors with the yogurt. Pairing yogurt with pasta is something I had never done before finding your blog, but I’m so happy about the discovery!
On November 12, 2012 at 1:05 pm
Mary says:
It is my favorite dish. I am cooking it a little different. you may see it in http://www.recipesstar.com/2012/11/yogurt-spaghetti.html
On November 24, 2012 at 5:57 am
elham says:
This is not lebeness
On May 31, 2013 at 5:22 pm
Cecil Koos says:
Really like reading your helpful hints as I think it’s essential that you have some form of focal point when you are trying to be fit and healthy. Diets can be so dull if you don’t get some type of encouragement and I always find a great deal of helpfull guidance whenever searching different blogs. It also helps in getting some encouragement for planning a variety of dishes rather than the identical veg week in week out.
On July 29, 2013 at 3:10 pm