Description
This sun-dried tomato pesto pasta is a combo of pasta and butter beans, tossed in a creamy sun-dried tomato pesto sauce. It’s the perfect quick and easy weeknight dinner!
Ingredients
Scale
Sun-Dried Tomato Pesto
- 1 cup sun-dried tomatoes, packed in oil
- 1/2 cup olive oil (use any remaining oil from the sun-dried tomato jar)
- 1/2 cup cashews
- 1/4 cup pine nuts
- 1 tbsp tomato paste
- 2 garlic cloves
- 1 tsp kosher salt
- Optional, 1/4 cup grated parmesan if not dairy-free
Pesto Pasta
- 2 cups (5 oz) paccheri or any tube-shaped pasta
- 1/2 cup homemade sun-dried tomato pesto
- 1/4 cup pasta water
- 1/4 cup cashew milk or creamy milk of choice
- 1/2 tsp freshly cracked black pepper
- 1 can (14 oz) butter beans, drained and rinsed
- Nutritional yeast or grated parmesan for topping
- Minced fresh basil for garnish
Instructions
- Cook the pasta. Cook the pasta according to package instructions (make sure to generously salt the water). Once the pasta is done, reserve 1/4 cup of pasta water, drain the pasta and set aside in a colander.
- Make the pesto while the pasta cooks. Add all of the pesto ingredients into your blender and blend on low for about 1 1/2 -2 minutes. The goal isn’t to make a paste but to grind the nuts and tomatoes into tiny pieces, which will mimic the mortar and pestle technique of making pesto. Reserve 1/2 cup of the pesto and store any leftover pesto in an airtight glass jar in the fridge for up to 1 week. I haven’t had the pesto oxidize on the top, but if you’re worried about it turning brown, drizzle a thin layer of olive oil on top to prevent oxidation.
- Make the sun-dried tomato pesto sauce. Heat the same pot used for the pasta on medium-low heat and add the 1/2 cup of pesto, pasta water, cashew milk, and black pepper. Cook the sauce until it begins to gently bubble and become creamy, about 2 minutes. Make sure to stir the sauce as it cooks to ensure it doesn’t stick to the bottom of the pan. Reduce the heat to low and add the butter beans and cooked pasta into the sauce. Mix gently to coat the pasta and warm it up a bit, about 1-2 minutes. Adjust salt as needed.
- Serve. Evenly divide the pasta into bowls, and top with thinly sliced basil, a generous drizzle of olive oil (optional), and nutritional yeast or parmesan.