Pesto Pasta Salad
This pesto pasta salad recipe is bursting with fresh flavor! It's light, healthy and sure to please. Vegetarian and easily vegan/gluten free.
Updated by Kathryne Taylor on August 30, 2024
This pesto pasta salad is destined for your next gathering. Or at least, that’s what I hope! This recipe is light and so fresh. It’s perfect for parties, picnics and weeknight dinners, from spring through fall. Leftovers keep well for lunch, too.
Pesto and pasta are the stars of this show, naturally. To make it a pasta salad, I added a pint of cherry tomatoes, a few handfuls of fresh arugula, and some cheese. I love salty feta in this recipe, though mozzarella and Parmesan are also great.
This pasta salad recipe includes homemade pesto made with a few little twists. Instead of pine nuts, I opted for more affordable pepitas (green pumpkin seeds). You can use pine nuts if you’d rather—or even walnuts or pecans.
I like to use half fresh basil and half fresh parsley, which tastes even more interesting and also cuts down on costs (buying lots of fresh basil can be expensive). You could certainly use all basil if you have an abundance growing in your garden. I also add some fresh lemon juice to brighten up the dish. Give it a try!
Pesto Pasta Salad Tips
The recipe below is simple and straightforward, but here are some notes before you get started.
- Reserve some pasta cooking water. We’ll need up to 1/2 cup of the starchy pasta cooking water to help bring this sauce together. To help me remember, I always place a heat-proof glass liquid measuring cup in the sink next to the colander.
- Rinse the pasta under cool water immediately after cooking. Rinsing the pasta reduces the amount of starch on the surface of the noodles, so they don’t clump together before you have a chance to toss them in pesto sauce.
- To make this dish gluten free, simply substitute your favorite gluten-free noodles. A sturdy corn-and-quinoa blend usually works well in this type of dish.
- To make it vegan, simply don’t add cheese. To make up for the substance and salty flavor that cheese provides, try adding olives and/or chickpeas to the dish.
- Serve promptly. This pasta salad is best served within a few hours, but leftovers will keep relatively well in the refrigerator, covered, for up to four days. The only downside is that the arugula will wilt a bit with time.
Watch How to Make Pesto Pasta Salad
More Fresh Pasta Dishes
If you enjoy this pesto pasta salad, try these recipes next:
- Broccoli Pesto Pasta with Green Olives
- Caprese Pasta Salad
- Double Tomato Pesto Spaghetti with Zucchini Noodles
- Green Goddess Tortellini Salad
- Vegan Spaghetti alla Puttanesca
Please let me know how your recipe turns out in the comments! I love hearing from you.
Pesto Pasta Salad
This pesto pasta salad recipe is bursting with fresh flavor. It’s light, healthy and easy to make. Perfect for picnics and potlucks! Recipe yields 6 to 8 side servings.
Ingredients
- 1 pound whole grain pasta (fusilli, rotini, penne or farfalle)
- 1 pint cherry tomatoes, halved or quartered
- 3 handfuls baby arugula or spinach
- Optional cheese: ½ cup or more crumbled feta cheese, little mozzarella balls or grated Parmesan
- Optional additions: ½ cup thinly sliced Kalamata olives and/or 1 can (15 ounces) chickpeas, rinsed and drained (or 1 ½ cups cooked chickpeas)
- Freshly ground black pepper
Pesto
- ½ cup pepitas (hulled pumpkin seeds)*
- ½ cup packed fresh basil
- ½ cup packed fresh flat-leaf parsley or additional basil
- ¼ cup lemon juice (about 2 lemons)
- 1 clove garlic, roughly chopped
- ½ teaspoon fine salt
- ⅓ cup extra-virgin olive oil
Instructions
- Bring a large pot of salted water to boil for the pasta. Cook the pasta until al dente according to the package directions. Before draining, reserve about ½ cup pasta cooking water, then drain and immediately rinse the pasta under cool water to prevent the noodles from sticking together. Transfer the pasta to a large serving bowl.
- Meanwhile, to prepare the pesto: In a small skillet, toast the pepitas over medium heat, stirring often, until they are fragrant and making little popping noises, about 4 to 5 minutes. Pour half of the pepitas into a bowl for later (we will use them as garnish).
- Pour the remaining pepitas into a food processor. Add the basil, parsley, lemon juice, garlic and salt. Process while slowly drizzling in the olive oil, stopping to scrape down the sides as necessary, until the pepitas have broken down to create a pretty smooth sauce.
- To assemble the pasta salad, pour all of the pesto over the pasta and toss until the pasta is lightly and evenly coated, adding a tiny splash of reserved pasta cooking water if necessary to thin it out. Then add the cherry tomatoes, arugula, remaining toasted pepitas, and any optional add-ins (cheese, olives and/or chickpeas).
- Toss again to combine, then season to taste with pepper. If the pasta needs more flavor, add salt, to taste, or a splash of lemon juice. If the flavors are too bold, let it rest for a few minutes, and add a little splash of olive oil if necessary to tone down the rest. This recipe will keep well, covered and refrigerated, for up to 4 days.
Notes
Recipe adapted from Vegan Goodness by Jessica Prescott.
*Change it up: You can use pine nuts, walnuts or almonds in the pesto instead of pepitas (although the dish will no longer be nut-free, if that is relevant to you).
Make it gluten free: Use your favorite gluten-free pasta.
Make it dairy free/vegan: Just don’t add any cheese!
Nutrition
The information shown is an estimate provided by an online nutrition calculator. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice. See our full nutrition disclosure here.
Congratulations, Kate!! I’m so excited for you! Good luck with moving!❤️
Thank you, Abbie! Hope you are having a great day.
How exciting for you! Hope you love your new kitchen and can keep cooking all your gorgeous dishes!
Thank you so much, Karen!
Hi Kate,
I’m so happy for you that you and Cookie are getting to move to a new place! You deserve someplace that’s as sunny and sweet as you are. Wishing you all the best!
Oh, and btw…’can’t wait to try this recipe – sounds yummy!
Sharmin
Sharmin, you’re sweet. Thank you! I hope you love this one.
This looks great! I have a copy of Vegan Goodness at home too!
Yay! Thanks, Rhian!
Congratulations on your new bright kitchen! That’s so exciting and I’m so jealous! My kitchen is so dark, that I have to take photos in my pantry, which has a window and some decent light. This pasta salad is just what I want for a Saturday on the patio!
Thank you, Lisa! I can’t wait. I am always running back and forth between my second bedroom (“studio”) and the kitchen, so I feel your pain!
Hi Kate. I am so glad that the move is making you inspired!!!! Your recipes are worth trying as they are really clean and fresh.
Thanks for sharin. I will surely make this one
Thank you so much, Tess! I can’t wait to cook in my new space. I hope you love this pasta salad!
Hello Kate, I’ve never commented here before but I love your blog and I use your recipes all the time! I have a question about olive oil. Lately I’ve heard a lot about how regular olive oil at a grocery store is not really the real thing and is often a cheap substitute. I was wondering if you have looked into this at all and if you might have an olive oil that you recommend? Congratulations on your new home, I can’t wait to start trying the recipes that come out of your new kitchen!
In the past, Kate has recommended California Olive Ranch olive oil. It comes in dark bottles and is sourced entirely from California. I buy it exclusively and it’s wonderful!
Thank you Madeline!
Thank you, Becky! Great question, Madeline. California Olive Ranch is my favorite. I’ve actually toured their fields and production facilities and they’re super passionate about their products. American olive oils are far more likely to be true, 100% olive oils than imported oils, which are often cut with low-grade oils. The latest research shows that real, high quality extra-virgin olive oil actually has a pretty high smoke point, too—between 400 and 425 degrees.
I went to my Mediterranean grocery store in Columbus Ohio and asked the owner’s wife what she uses. Cold pressed olive oil from Lebanon. I’ve bought it there and have used nothing else for years
This looks beautiful! What a perfect light dinner.
Sucks that you haven’t been loving your space so yay for finding one that suits you :D Can’t wait to see what you come up with in the new kitchen!
Also, I’ve been obsessed with pasta dishes and pesto recently so this is right up my alley <3
Thanks, Giselle!
Love that pesto recipe! It’s such a great addition to anything– makes a meal just taste special. I have a great watercress recipe I use a lot– so peppery and fresh.
Thanks, Michelle! I agree, pesto is great on just about everything. I never thought to add watercress!
We loved testing this recipe out in the Indychef kitchen, as HUGE lovers of pasta and especially for our midweek family meals we found this tasty and delicious and everyone loved it!
Awesome! Thanks, Katie!
Yay for the new house, Kate! I feel your pain about a kitchen that makes it tough to work in, I hope to move to a newer, shinier place next month myself :) This salad looks lovely!
Thank you, Gayatri! Maybe we can commiserate about the moving process next month. ;) Sounds like it will be worth it for both of us!
oh so excited for you – good luck in your new and may you have health to enjoy cooking in your new kitchen..x
opps good luck in your new home :)
Thank you, Brenda! :)
I made the salad, and it’s great! The only issue is that the pesto turned out extraordinarily sour! I followed some advice online, and I added some stevia to it. Great dish overall though!
Thanks, Anastacia! The pesto is bold and will mellow out a bit with time. I’m glad you made it work for you!
Beautiful, looks great!
Congrats Kate!
I couldn’t believe you were able to survive and cook amazing food in a house that you actually didn’t like! I enjoy cooking but always refuse to cook in a kitchen that I don’t like (especially when there is no window for sunlight and good food pics).
After reading your post, I realised I was just giving myself excuses and being lazy. Your stories are so inspirational!
I’ve always wanted to have my own place with big windows and everything white marble. And now I know I’ll cook until that day comes!
Thanks for sharing your life with us :)
Question- If I substitute almonds, do I still have to toast(step 2)?
Loved the pesto pasta salad. I usually do not make or eat pasta salads because I find them bland. NOT THIS ONE. I made the pesto per recipe but switched out the seeds for walnuts because I had them. Otherwise I followed the recipe exactly as written and was rewarded with tons of flavor and textures. Will make again! Thanks.
We did this recipe this week- but with store bought pesto for ease. Super tasty recipe and crazy quick to prepare. Thanks!
Thanks for another great recipe- this will be added to my rotation of salad dressings and sauces. Happy New Year!
You’re welcome, Russell! I’m happy this made it into your rotation. & Happy New Year to you, too!
Hi! Is this something that could be made ahead of time and eaten for lunches all week? Maybe just leave out the spinach and add when it is served each time?
Hi, Beth! I think that’d work well, maybe storing the pesto separate, too, would help keep the pasta’s texture a bit better.
Hi Kate,
Looking forward to making this. I made pesto during the winter and froze it. So I will plan to use that pesto… how much would you say to put into the recipe?
Good idea! I’m guessing about 2/3 cup.
Kate, just wanted to let you know that I prepared this for a dinner we shared with good friends earlier in the week. I had never tried pepitas, and the pesto made with them is awesome!!! After having read all the reviews, I did opt to reduce the lemon juice to 3 tablespoons. I did not include the optional olives or chickpeas, but did add maybe 1/8th of a cup of Go Veggie Vegan Parmesan Topping when mixing the salad together. We all loved the salad, but the 5 star rating is especially because my husband, definitely not a vegan or vegetarian, doing the taste test to make sure it was okay to take to our friends’ home without any tweaking, said it was DELICIOUS!!!! Thanks, this will be a go-to recipe!
Hooray! I’m glad this one passed the test, Kris. :)
Really excited to make this – so many yummy things. I’m trying to get ahead on planning a picnic – how long will it keep in the fridge do you think?
Hey Sara, it’s best when served soon after making, but it’ll keep pretty well for several days in the fridge.
Besides loving this salad, this is my go-to vegan pesto recipe! We use it for our garlic, broccoli, tomato vegan pizza. Sometimes I sub pine nuts for the pepitas for a different flavor. Either way, it’s a top-notch recipe!
Thanks, Melanie! It’s useful for so many dishes.
Gosh, I really wanted to love this recipe (I’ve LOVED everything of yours so far!) because it’s packed full of a lot of individually yummy ingredients, but for me, it just didn’t come together as a whole. I’m not sure what I’d add to make it feel a bit more cohesive though. My husband suggested simplifying it by using only the pesto, pasta, and tomatoes. Anyhow, thanks for all of the wonderful recipes!
I’m sorry this one didn’t work out as well, Marina. :/
I can’t wait to try this recipe! Can you tell me what food processor you use? I need to buy one. I am loving your new cook book…it is really inspiring me!! I am dairy and gluten free so I love and appreciate how you label each recipe so clearly. Thank you!
Hi! is the parsley necessary?
If you’re averse to parsley, I think you could just omit it altogether.
Or can I sub spinach for parsley?
Probably, yes! If you’re looking to fill in for the missing greens, I think spinach will work fine. Just stay away from baby spinach- the stems tend to be bitter, so it could affect the taste.
Hello – thank you for sharing this recipe. I am thinking of making this for a summer party we are having. If I make the morning of the party, adding the arugula right before serving do you think that would be ok? Refrigerating the tossed pasta until then? Thank you!
Yes, I’d store the greens separately and add just before serving. Let me know how it goes!
Worked out just perfect for my daughter’s 3rd birthday party/BBQ. Best part–the kids wolfed it down without one complaint about vegetables or the color green! Thank you, it’ll be on our menu again for sure.
Awesome! Thank you, Julia!
If I want to use almonds instead of pepitas, should I roast them?
I think it’d work great either way, Wendy, but I’m partial to roasting!
This recipe was so easy to make and very yummy! Kate thanks so much for making it easy to eliminate meat from my diet. I use your website almost every day of the week to cook :) You go girl.
You’re welcome, Caroline! I’m so glad my blog has been so helpful for you.
I made this yesterday for a baby shower at work. It’s a delicious recipe and everybody enjoyed it!! I will have to make it for every pot luck here at work now, my supervisor said. Thanks for the recipe!
Everyone begged for this recipe at my get together! Loved it!
Great! Thanks for sharing it, too!
Can I use store bought pesto as a short cut?
You can. How ever the homemade is worth it! Depending on the thickness of your pesto, you may want to add some additional oil.
My kids loves your recipe for pesto pasta. So easy to make, but yummy❤❤❤
Thank you!
What a great recipe!!! I used my own pesto and it was still good!!!
Thanks for a delicious lunch!
You’re welcome!
Had a holiday party with gluten-free, vegan and nut-free colleagues. Made this recipe, opting for Barilla gluten-free spaghetti, and skipping the cheese. HUGE hit! Thanks!
You’re welcome! I’m glad it was such a hit with all dietary needs.
After I’ve tried this recipe once, I keep craving for it. It is really good.
I love to hear that!
Let me just say: WOW. I made this for the first time a couple months back for my big family gathering on Mother’s Day. Since we always have way too much food prepared, I thought for sure I’d have some leftover to take home—I swear it didn’t last more than 10 minutes once I put it out on the counter!! My family went nuts. I’ve since made it three more times AND had to give the recipe out to all my sisters.
We’re not vegan so I do usually end up adding a little ricotta to the pesto each time for some creaminess, and of course I throw in all the goods: chickpeas, kalamata olives, cherry tomatoes, and some feta. This pesto pasta salad is a keeper FOR SURE.
Hi Cookie & Kate. I just started trying different ideas and came across your recipes which I found fantastic. I will be making a lot of different combinations to trial over a 12 week healthy Lifestyle challenge and will be placing ingredients and recipes in Jars. Keep up your great work.
Tracy
Thank you, Tracy!
I had a question about assembling the salad. I wasn’t sure if I should wait for the pasta to cool or not. Since it was a weekday lunch, I just did a quick assembly. I have to say that I loved the slightly wilted spinach and the intensity of warmed tomatoes. And the pesto just melted into the pasta.
I’ll try this one again with other variations!
Thank you for sharing, Mary!
Can I make this the day befor or will it be to strong
Hi! You can, but your arugula may wilt and not be as fresh. Let me know what you think!
American cuisine? It looks yummy but Pesto pasta is italian origin.
Hi Katie! Thank you for your feedback. Yes, you are correct about pesto having Italian roots. Although I did take liberties that may not be as traditionally Italian as to why it is labeled different.
Delicious! Made this beautiful salad today with spinach and tossed in a jar of artichoke hearts. Thank you!!
You’re welcome, Susan.
This is so delicious. I made it for my daughter’s 12th birthday party a few weeks ago and it was a big hit. Then I made more the next day as she loved it so much. I’m now making it again. I could eat this every day.
I just made the pesto pasta salad. Oh my goodness!! It’s the best ever! I added in all the optional extras and used cotija cheese instead of the feta since that’s what I had. Thank you Kate! Another winner!!
Hooray! I’m excited you loved it, Sherry. I appreciate your review.
Hi , and thank you for all the great recipes! My question is if you’re using gluten free pasta , such as brown rice pasta, do you think saving and using some of the cooking water would apply as well to enhance the sauce in the same way as semolina pasta?
Hi Maureen, I find using the cooking water with brown rice pasta works similarly to wheat pasta water to get a sauce.
Very delicious! I added cut up Persian cucumbers and a couple splashes of red wine vinegar. I used store bought pesto so it saved me some time.
Thank you for sharing how you adapted this recipe, Lydia! I appreciate your review.