Vegetarian Pasta Pesto

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Vegetarian Pasta Pesto is the perfect summer meal. It does not require much cooking, and it is quick!

What You’ll Need

For the pesto sauce:

• 1 cup baby spinach
• 1 cup basil
• 1/2 cup sliced or slivered almonds
• 1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
• 1/4 cup unsweetened almond milk or any milk
• 1/4 cup nutritional yeast, I prefer Bob’s Redmill
• 2 cloves of garlic
• dash of salt
• dash of crushed red pepper (optional)

Other ingredients:

• 12 oz. cherry tomatoes, cut in half
• 1 15 oz. can of chickpeas, rinsed with water
• 1 pound box of pasta, I prefer Barilla Protein Plus

Tools:

• blender
• colander
• pot
• knife
• cutting board
• large pasta serving dish

How to Make Vegetarian Pasta Pesto

Vegetarian pasta pesto is an easy recipe. First, put all the pesto sauce ingredients into a blender. Blend till a smooth paste.

Next, cook the pasta according to the package instructions. While the pasta is cooking, open the can of chickpeas, place chickpeas into a colander to drain and rinse well with cold running water.

Wash the cherry tomatoes and cut them in half.

After the pasta is fully cooked and drained, transfer it to a large serving dish. Pour the pesto on the pasta and stir until evenly coated. Top off with the chickpeas and cherry tomatoes. Enjoy!

Variations

• Any nut or seed can replace the sliced almonds in the pesto sauce. Walnuts, pine nuts, pumpkin seeds, hemp seeds, cashews, or peanuts can be used instead.
• Any green can be used in the pesto. As an alternative, use all baby spinach or all basil leaves instead of half & half. Other great options are: arugula, kale, and Swiss Chard.
• Any milk can take the place of the almond milk in the pesto sauce. If you would like to keep it dairy free, try unsweetened soy, cashew, or oat milk instead.
• You can use any pasta in this recipe. I prefer Barilla Protein Plus pasta because it looks and tastes just like white pasta. Since it is made from beans and whole grains, it is high in protein and fiber. Whole wheat pasta, brown rice pasta, chickpea pasta, lentil pasta, and quinoa pasta are also great choices for protein and fiber.

What else can you do with pesto sauce?

You should try my pesto tofu recipe as well! This is another recipe with the same pesto sauce.

You could use the pesto sauce, over any other whole grain such as farro, brown rice, quinoa, or barley to add flavor to a meal.

Try pesto sauce as a marinade for fish, chicken, or another meat. It is tasty as a topping for scrambled eggs or omelets as well.

Use pesto sauce on flat bread or pizza.

Make ahead, storage, reheat tips

Make pesto sauce in advance. When freshly prepared and stored in an airtight container, it will last for 4-5 days in the refrigerator.

Freeze pesto sauce too. You can freeze it in a Ziplock freezer bag. Or for small portions, freeze it in an ice cube tray. After frozen, it will be good for up to 6 months.

Looking for other ways to use pesto? Try these recipes!

Try my Pesto Tofu!

Kale Pesto Mushroom Pistachio Bowls by Love & Lemons