Creamy pasta where chickpea hummus becomes the sauce, its spinach and basil brightening a quick weeknight dish. The hummus holds enough salt and sesame to need only garlic and good oil, so this comes together in the time it takes to boil water.

Serves 2. 20 minutes, 8 at the stove.

About 720 calories a serving, 15 g protein, 72 g carbohydrate, 41 g fat. From USDA figures for 100% of the ingredients; amounts are the recipe's.

Cook mode

1. Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil and cook 6 oz pasta until al dente, reserving 1 cup of the starchy cooking water before draining.15 min
2. Mince 2 cloves garlic and warm them in 2 tablespoons oil in a large skillet over low heat until fragrant, about 1 minute, then stir in the entire container of hummus with 3/4 cup of the reserved cooking water to loosen it into a creamy sauce.2 min
3. When the sauce is warm and smooth, toss in the drained pasta and the juice of half a lemon, stirring until every strand is coated and the sauce clings, adding more water if it seems dry.
4. Taste and adjust salt and pepper as needed, and serve at once with the remaining lemon wedge on the side.

Note Swap fresh dill or mint for the parsley in the hummus if you have it. Leftovers keep three days covered in the fridge and can be loosened with warm water or broth to serve again. A handful of peppery greens or a green salad makes a light meal complete.