Easy Basil Pesto Pasta with Sweet Peas

Easy pesto pasta is the perfect weeknight recipe! It’s ready in less than 30 minutes, full of bold flavors, and creamy without any added cream. Option to make it dairy free / vegan, and customize it with whatever protein or veggies you like!

The best pesto pasta

Pesto pasta is the ultimate EASY weeknight dinner that we love making for pasta night at our house. It comes together in less than 30 minutes and is always satisfying.

You can make it your own by adding chicken or shrimp and some veggies, or keep it simple on those nights when you just need to get dinner on the table fast!

Either way you’ll find it’s full of tons of bright flavor that the whole family will enjoy.

We love making it with this simple homemade basil pesto but store bought works, too!

Why you’ll love this pesto pasta

It is:

• Easy to make
• Herbaceous + bright
• Full of bold flavors
• Ready in less than 30 minutes
• Creamy without any heavy cream
• Easy to customize
• Gluten free and vegetarian
• Easy to make without cheese for a vegan pasta
• Delightfully tasty!

Ingredients and substitutions

The ingredients in this pesto pasta are really simple, but there’s lots of additions and substitutions you can make throughout the recipe to customize it to your preferences. I’ll share some of those options below!

Here’s what you need

• Homemade or store bought pesto – Because it’s so easy to make and boasts a ton of savory, herbaceous flavor, we love to make pesto pasta with this Homemade Basil Pesto. But if you’re short on time feel free to grab a store bought pesto. Look in the refrigerated section for the freshest option!
• Pasta – Any shape of pasta works for pesto pasta. For this recipe I used our favorite gluten free spaghetti.
• Frozen peas – I frequently throw frozen peas into pasta recipes because they’re almost always in our freezer and they cook quickly in the same pot as the pasta. Feel free to omit or substitute with another veggie!
• Pasta cooking water – Reserving at least 1 cup of your pasta cooking water is the key to achieving a super creamy consistency without any heavy cream. When added to the pasta with the pesto it emulsifies the sauce to coat the noodles perfectly.
• Salt and pepper – To taste.
• Parmesan or dairy free parmesan, extra basil, and pine nuts – Optional, for serving.

The best pasta for pesto

You can make pesto pasta with any shape of pasta that you like!

Our top picks are spaghetti, linguini, fusilli, penne, or rigatoni, but just about any shape will do the trick. It’s even delicious with gnocchi or ravioli!

What vegetables can you add?

I’ve kept it pretty simple in this recipe and just added some frozen peas to the pasta, but there are so many other tasty veggies you could add!

Some options and how to cook them:

• Spinach – Toss into the pasta just before serving to wilt slightly.
• Broccoli – Cook for 1-2 minutes with the boiling pasta just before draining.
• Tomatoes – Sauté or roast in the oven with a little olive oil and salt before adding to the cooked pasta at the same time as the pesto, or add fresh, halved cherry tomatoes for a burst of fresh flavor.
• Arugula – Toss into the pasta just before serving to wilt slightly.
• Mushrooms – Pan sear or roast in the oven until golden brown.
• Bell pepper – Sauté or roast in the oven until tender.
• Red onion – Briefly Sauté or roast at a high temp until done to your liking.
• Green beans – Cut into bite sized pieces and cook for 2-3 minutes with the boiling pasta water just before draining.
• Asparagus – Cut into bite sized pieces and cook for 1-2 minutes with the boiling pasta water just before draining.
• Zucchini – Sauté or roast in the oven until tender and slightly caramelized.

How to make this pasta vegan / dairy free

• Make sure your pesto sauce is dairy free. This homemade pesto can easily be made dairy free by substituting nutritional yeast for the parmesan cheese or by leaving it out.
• Use dairy free parmesan to garnish or leave it off. This recipe for vegan parmesan cheese is a delicious dairy free parmesan option to garnish pasta. There’s also some great store bought options available that you could try!

How to make

Pasta with pesto is one of the easiest pasta dishes you can make, especially if you already have your pesto ready to go.

Here’s the step-by-step

• Cook pasta and reserve pasta water. Bring a large pot of salted water to boil and cook pasta according to package instructions. Add the frozen peas to the boiling water 30 seconds before the pasta is done cooking. Before draining, scoop out and reserve about 1 cup of the past cooking water.
• Toss with pesto. With the pot off the stove top, return pasta and peas to the pot along with the pesto and 1/2 cup pasta cooking water. Use tongs or two large forks to toss together until evenly coated. Add more pasta water as needed to stretch the sauce and make a cohesive, creamy sauce.
• Season to taste with salt and pepper and serve immediately topped with parmesan cheese and some extra basil if desired. Enjoy!

Recipe tips

• Reserve some pasta cooking water. The cooking water from your pasta is like magic in bringing the sauce together beautifully. It helps the sauce stick to the noodles and creates a luscious, creamy, consistency without adding any cream. Though you may not need it all save at least one cups worth. If the pasta seems too dry, just add a bit more pasta cooking water!
• Toss the pasta with pesto off of the heat. Because hot temperatures can turn your pasta from green to brown, I recommend removing the pot from the stove top before tossing the pasta with the pesto. Alternatively, you can also toss it all together in a large glass serving bowl.
• Season to taste with salt and pepper. Different pestos have different flavor profiles. To make sure your pasta is properly seasoned make sure you taste it and season to taste with salt and pepper before serving.

Storage and reheating

Refrigerator: This pesto pasta will keep in the refrigerator in an airtight container for up to 5 days.

Reheating: To reheat, warm the pasta on low in a skillet, and add water to the sauce a little bit at a time, stirring in between, until desired consistency is reached. Re-season with salt if needed. Alternatively, reheat in the microwave for 1-2 minutes until warmed through.

Freezing: I would not recommend freezing this pasta. I haven’t tried but I think that the texture of the pasta and sauce would not hold up well when thawed. Pesto does freeze well by itself, though!

Love this recipe? Try these other pasta recipes!

• Vegan Fettuccine Alfredo
• Creamy Dairy Free Cajun Chicken Pasta
• Vegan Mexican Taco Pasta
• Creamy Vegan Vodka Pasta Sauce
• Cashew Cream Mushroom and Kale Pasta
• Gluten Free Chicken Sausage and Broccoli Pasta
• Creamy Vegan Mushroom Stroganoff
• Nut Free Vegan Mac and Cheese

If you enjoyed this recipe, we’d love it if you would take 5 seconds to rate and review it below! It’s also super helpful for other readers if you share any modifications you made to the recipe. 

Thank you for sharing your kitchen with NK. We’re so grateful you’re here!

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