Vibrant vegetable pasta with pesto made with roasted veggies. A healthy and flavorful dish that will please any pasta cravings.
Pasta works all the time, doesn't it? When in doubt about what to cook, just cook some noodles and add anything to them. They will be great, doesn't matter what.
Just a touch of olive oil and garlic or some butter and Parmesan, you don't need much to make a super tasty dish. You could also try this Tuna Pesto Pasta or the Cream Cheese Pasta.
In this case, add some pesto and veggies to make a flavorful and filling pot of veggie pesto pasta. The sweet, caramelized vegetables and the pesto are an amazing combination, so good that even kids will eat every single piece of the veggies without a word of complaint...
Table of contents
What do you need?
Pasta:
- I used macaroni, but any other short kind would do.
- Whole wheat or spelt are great in this combination as well.
Pesto:
- Preferably, homemade. Any kind would do, play with the flavors.
- In my case, it's wild garlic about 80 % of the time, because I make about 10 jars of it every spring, and I freeze them so that we can enjoy the wild garlic all through the year.
- Other kinds that I used: mint-pistachio, carrot greens, lemon balm, sage, and the regular and delicious basil pesto.
- The basil sort is the only one I don't make myself on a regular basis. Why? Well, good quality is readily available and such a large quantity of fresh basil usually costs more than 2 really good jars of the stuff. And basil just doesn't grow in my garden, it is too cold for it here.
Vegetables:
- Zucchini, bell peppers, red onions, and peas.
- With the exception of the peas, the veggies were roasted.
- You can choose the veggies according to what you like or what is in season.
- Alternatives: eggplants, pumpkin or squash, fennel, cherry tomatoes, carrots, green beans, broccoli, cauliflower, mushrooms, asparagus, and so on.
Other ingredients:
- Olive oil and dried rosemary for the roasted vegetables.
- Parmesan to finish the dish.
Tips
- You can replace the Parmesan with good feta cheese, I love the combination as well!
- Make sure to roast the veg in a single layer. Use a large roasting tin or baking tray or two of them, if necessary. If I roast two trays at the same time, I do it in the fan oven at 180 degrees Celsius/ 360 degrees Fahrenheit.
- To scoop the cooking water I use a regular mug. I never use it all, just enough to give the dish a little more moisture, if necessary.
How to make vegetable pasta with pesto?
- Chop the vegetables into cubes. Place in a roasting tin, mix well with olive oil, dried rosemary, salt, and pepper.
- Roast in the preheated oven for about 25-30 minutes until the vegetables are tender and slightly caramelized.
- In the meantime, cook the noodles in salted water according to the package instructions. Add the peas to the pot 2 minutes before the cooking time is over. Reserve about a cup of the cooking water and drain the rest.
- Return the noodles and peas to the pot. (1)
- Add the pesto and 2 tablespoons Parmesan. Mix well and add a little of the reserved cooking water if necessary. Don't add it all, just about a splash or two if you think it needs more moisture. (2)
- Add the veggies and combine everything again. Adjust the taste with salt and pepper. (3)
How to serve?
Serve immediately sprinkled with more Parmesan.
However, this pasta with vegetables and pesto dish can definitely be served at room temperature as well. Like a salad. Let it cool completely and keep refrigerated in an airtight container. When ready to serve, bring it to room temperature for about 30 minutes.
Stir it well and add a little olive oil or an extra tablespoon of pesto to make it moister again. Adjust the taste with salt and pepper and sprinkle with some freshly grated Parmesan.
More delicious pasta dishes with veggies
Vegetable Pasta with Pesto
Ingredients
- 2 zucchini about 400 g/ 14 oz
- 2 bell peppers for instance, one red, one yellow
- 1 red onion medium to large
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 teaspoon dried rosemary
- 14 oz short pasta 400 g, Note 1
- 1 cup frozen peas 125 g/ 4.5 oz
- 3 tablespoons pesto Note 2
- 2 tablespoons freshly grated Parmesan + more to serve
- fine sea salt and black pepper
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 200 degrees Celsius/ 400 degrees Fahrenheit.
- Chop the zucchini and bell peppers into cubes of similar size. Slice the onion. Place the veggies in a large roasting tin in a single layer.
- Season: Pour the olive oil on top, add rosemary, and generously salt and pepper. Mix well with your hands, the veggies should be all coated in oil and spices.
- Roast for 25-30 minutes or until they are tender and slightly caramelized.
- Cook pasta: In the meantime, bring a large pot of water to a boil. Add salt generously. Add pasta and cook according to package instructions, adding the peas during the last 2 minutes of the cooking time. Reserve about 1 cup of the pasta water and drain the rest.
- Combine: Return the pasta and peas to the pot. Add pesto and Parmesan and a splash of pasta water. Mix well and add another splash of water, but only if you feel that the pasta needs more moisture.
- Add the roasted veggies and stir to combine.
- Adjust the taste with salt and pepper. Serve sprinkled with more Parmesan.
Notes
- Any kind of short pasta you have. Whole wheat pasta is great as well.
- I use homemade wild garlic pesto or bought basil pesto most of the time. However, absolutely any kind of pesto you like is great.
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