Spinach Pesto Pasta

Why you will love this recipe

Refreshing Flavors: Refreshing lemon, fresh spinach, garlic and olive oil combines with pasta, tomatoes and onions creating a satisfying pasta dish and walnuts to give it the perfect texture.

Easy Recipe: This is a simple easy Spinach Pesto Pasta that comes together easily in a short amount of time, with just a handful of ingredients and it’s extremely easy to make.

Vegan: Yes this Spinach Pesto Pasta is a vegan recipe and extremely satisfying, filling and delicious. Perfect for lunch or dinner.

Warm or Cold: This can be enjoyed both ways, as a warm Spinach Pesto Pasta right away once the noodles, tomatoes and onions are cooked. Or refrigerate and serve the next day as a cold pasta (with in 2 days).

Ingredients

For instructions and quantities of how to make this Spinach Pesto Pasta be sure to check out the recipe card below.

Spinach: This is used for the base of the pesto.

Olive Oil: Adds a smooth texture to the pesto.

Garlic: Used to enhance the flavor.

Lemon Juice: Used to give a fresh flavor to the pesto.

Walnuts: Used for texture and flavor in this spinach walnut pasta.

Onion Powder, Salt and Pepper: Added flavorings.

Pasta: Any pasta you like most will work but I really like rotini or spaghetti.

Cherry Tomatoes: Adds a nice fresh element to this spinach walnut pesto pasta.

Onion: More flavor and texture.

Variations

Change the Nuts: Switch the chopped walnuts to pine nuts, sunflower, pistachios or cashews for a change in the taste.
Add Additional Vegetables: You can add other veggies, mushrooms, broccoli or asparagus any of your favorite veggies.
Make it Spicy: If you like spice feel free to add chili flakes or a couple jalapeños it will definitely give this pasta a kick.

How to make this Spinach Pesto Pasta

All the ingredients to make Easy Spinach Pesto added to the blender.

Step 1: Place everything for the pesto in a food processor or high speed blender and blend until smooth.

Easy Spinach Pesto all blended up in the blender.

Pesto blended up!

Step 2: Bring a pot of water to a boil, be sure to add a pinch of salt to the pasta water. Cook pasta according to directions on you pasta box. (reserve about ½ cup pasta water to thin the pesto if needed)

Tomatoes and onion being sautéed in pan.

Step 3: Slice tomatoes, chop onions and sauté in a skillet (sprayed with non-stick spray) on medium heat salt/pepper to taste, cook for about 5 minutes.

Clear glass bowl with cooked rotini pasta and the pesto added on top ready to be mixed.

Step 4: Pour pasta in a bowl, mix in pesto sauce, add reserved pasta cooking water to thin the pesto and help it mix in. Top with sautéed tomatoes and onions. Serve immediately or store in a sealed container in the fridge up to 2 days.

Spinach Pesto Pasta in a clear glass bowl on a marble surface.

Pesto getting mixed into the pasta.

Expert Tips

Salt your pasta water: Salting the water before boiling both seasons the pasta and helps to reduce stickiness.
Don’t overcook the pasta: Overcooking can lead to mushy or sticky pasta and can also cause the pasta to lose some of its flavor.
Serve for lunch or dinner: This pasta dish pairs perfectly with our Pear Almond Salad, or Garlic Onion Black Bean Burgers.

Recipe FAQs

Is pesto pasta better hot or cold?

It's great both ways, warm is great for dinner and cold is great for lunch the next day. But this is a personal choice. This Spinach Pesto Pasta tastes great either way.

How much pesto should you add to pasta?

A good estimate is, if you have 1 cup of cooked pasta general it’s said about 2 ounces of pesto is needed. But it’s certainly a personal preference if you like a lot of sauce add more if you prefer less sauce use less.

Does pesto have spinach in it?

This pesto recipe does have spinach in it. But there are many different pesto recipes that have a variety of other ingredients like fresh basil and pine nuts.