Ben and I are watching a series on Peacock TV called Escape to the Chateau. It’s about a British couple and their two young children who purchase a derelict, yet COMPLETELY dreamy, 19th century French chateau to restore and turn into their home/event venue. If you like House Hunters but are always curious to know what happens next, this show is for you. Except replace a 2 bedroom condo in Boston with a 45 room chateau in the French countryside. Can you say upgrade?! The chateau is everything this history-lover could ever want in life, but also, I am so stressed out watching each episode. The thing is in such bad shape when they buy it! Luckily Dick is an engineer, and his wife Angel is a designer, so they know just what to do. Dick also grew up on a farm and transformed the Chateau’s crumbling walled garden into a field of dreams with wild flowers and rows and rows with beds and beds of homegrown produce. I can totally see Dick and Angel hopping out to the garden to pick the ingredients to make Pesto Veggie Pasta once a week. This vegetarian pesto pasta dish is packed with fresh herbs and vegetables!
Pesto Veggie Pasta
Rotini pasta joins sauteed vegetables including zucchini, summer squash, sweet corn, and cherry tomatoes, seasoned with a robust Montreal seasoning blend, then homemade basil pesto and salty pasta cooking water are swirled in to create a light and silky sauce. I am obsessed with adding pasta cooking water to pasta dishes – including this pesto pasta. The starch in the pasta cooking water mixes with the pesto allowing it to cling to every single swirl of the rotini. This gluten free, vegetarian pesto pasta dish is garlicky, super fast, and so so good. We will be making and eating all spring and summer long!
The Art of Homemade Pesto
I’ve learned over the years that making homemade basil pesto is somewhat of an art form. In an ideal world, pesto is made by finely chopping the ingredients then blending them together using a mortar and pestle, but here in my real world with a job and three kids, I rely on my food processor to get the job done! Here are the ingredients I use, and my main findings: Alrighty – let’s cook!
Step 1: Make the Basil Pesto
Start by making the fresh pesto. To the bowl of a food processor add fresh basil, walnuts, garlic, salt, and a squeeze of fresh lemon juice. Pulse until the basil is finely chopped.
Next, stream in extra virgin olive oil, scraping down the sides once. Again, you don’t need to sloooooowly stream it in as if you’re making mayonnaise. We’re looking for something between a pour and a stream – you’ve got it! Remove the bowl from the unit then stir in freshly grated parmesan cheese. Taste then add more lemon juice if needed. We’re looking for a fresh and bright flavor vs an overly lemon flavor.
Step 2: Boil the Pasta
Next add gluten free rotini (or regular rotini if you don’t need to eat GF) to a pot of boiling water that’s been seasoned with a small palmful of salt. Cook until the pasta is just shy of al dente then BEFORE DRAINING remove ~1 cup of the pasta cooking water. Drain the pasta then set aside.
Step 3: Saute the Vegetables
Meanwhile, add chopped shallot or onion, zucchini, summer squash, and fresh garlic to a large skillet with extra virgin olive oil. Season generously with Montreal seasoning, which gives the fresh veggies big, meaty flavor, then saute until they’re crisp-tender, 5-6 minutes.
Step 4: Mix Everything Together
Once the vegetables are crisp-tender, add the drained pasta, halved cherry tomatoes, the fresh pesto, plus a splash of the pasta cooking water and stir to combine. The cooking water will help loosen up the pesto and create a light yet flavor-packed sauce.
That’s all she wrote! Taste then add more salt if necessary before dishing up and digging in. I hope you love this fresh and tasty Pesto Veggie Pasta as much as we do – enjoy!
More Fresh Veggie Recipes
Creamy Sweet Corn Pasta with Basil Pasta Fresca Jennifer Aniston Salad Sesame Noodle Salad Bruschetta Chicken Pasta Roasted Sweet Potato Black Bean Bowls with Chili-Lime Dressing
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