Instead of oil-based or creamy pasta salads, elevate your next pasta salad by dressing it with a homemade herby pesto! This Pesto Pasta Salad recipe is made with bow tie pasta, homemade pumpkin seed pesto, cherry tomatoes, red peppers and mini mozzarella balls! It's like a caprese pasta salad, but instead of basil, everything is coated in a bright, fresh and lemony basil pesto. You'll love it as a make ahead side dish for potlucks, BBQs or picnics, and you can even add chicken to make it a main meal!
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Table of Contents
This recipe was first published in December 2017! Back then, I was calling it a festive pesto pasta salad and made it Christmas themed, complete with red and green bow tie pasta. While it was a cute idea, I wanted to revamp the recipe to reflect that it's a delicious salad option for any time of the year!
In addition to updating the photos, I also included more helpful tips for making this salad as well as a few tweaks to the recipe to make it even better.
Ingredients and substitutions
Below is a brief overview of some of the ingredients and recommended substitutions. The recipe card at the end of this post includes the exact ingredients and quantities used.
- Pasta - I really like bow tie (farfalle) pasta for this recipe, but you can use other types such as rotini, cavatappi or fusilli. The pesto really likes to cling to these types of shapes!
- Pesto - I've adapted my pumpkin seed pesto recipe for this salad but you can use your favorite pesto recipe or make substitutions to this one to make it your own. For instance, you can substitute the pumpkin seeds with pine nuts, walnuts or cashews.
- Tomatoes - I love juicy and ripe cherry tomatoes for this recipe, but grape tomatoes work great too.
- Peppers - Sweet bell peppers add the best flavor to this salad. I like red but you can also use yellow or orange. I would avoid green pepper as they're not as sweet and may even taste a little bitter. If you want to go in a different direction, you can even substitute another crunchy vegetable such as cucumber.
- Mini mozzarella balls - Also called mozzarella pearls or bocconcini, they have a soft and creamy texture, and are even more delicious when they're coated in pesto. If you can't find them, you can substitute with fresh mozzarella and just cut it into small pieces.
How to make this pesto bow tie pasta salad
Below is a brief overview of the steps to make this recipe along with photos. For further details, please see the recipe card at the end of this post.
Key recipe tips
- Cook the pasta al dente. You don't want your pasta to get mushy in this salad once it's mixed together with the pesto.
- Rinse the pasta with cold water. This not only cools it down but removes some of the starch so it doesn't clump together.
- Use good quality extra virgin olive oil. Since pesto requires a lot of oil, it should be good quality to prevent your pesto from tasting bitter.
- Be generous with the pesto. It might seem like a lot of pesto for the salad, but trust me, some of it will absorb into the pasta, so you'll need it all. You can even double the recipe if you want extra on hand.
Recipe FAQs
Yes! You can cook the pasta, prep the veggies and make the pesto a day in advance. Before serving, just toss everything together in a bowl. Just note that the oil in the pesto may cause it to solidify a bit in the fridge so you will need to let it sit at room temperature for a bit before mixing it in with the salad.
While I love homemade pesto, you can definitely use store-bought to save time and money. You'll want to have about ¾ cup of pesto for this salad. Just note that the type/flavor of pesto you use will affect the flavor of the salad. Store-bought pesto also doesn't have the same vibrant green color that homemade pesto does.
It really depends on the quality of your pesto and freshness of your ingredients. I suggest enjoying this one within 2-3 days of making it. The pasta will absorb some of the pesto as it sits in the fridge, so you may want to stir a little oil into the salad to moisten it up or even stir in some extra pesto if you have some.
More pasta salad recipes
If you make this recipe, I'd love to hear what you think in the comments below!
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📖 Recipe
Pesto Pasta Salad with Tomatoes, Peppers and Mozzarella
Ingredients
For the pesto:
- 1 cup fresh basil, packed
- ½ cup pumpkin seeds, raw and hulled
- ¼ cup fresh parsley, packed
- ¼ cup finely grated parmesan cheese
- 1 lemon, juiced
- 1 clove garlic
- ¼ teaspoon fine sea salt
- ⅓ cup extra virgin olive oil
For the rest of salad:
- ½ pound (227 g) dry bow tie pasta, (about 3 cups)
- 1 ½ cups cherry tomatoes, halved
- 1 cup mini mozzarella balls/bocconcini
- 1 large red bell pepper, chopped
Instructions
Make the pesto:
- Add all the pesto ingredients, except the oil, to a food processor and pulse until the ingredients are blended into tiny pieces.
- With the food processor running on low, slowly stream in the oil so it emulsifies with the mixture. Stop and scrape down the sides as necessary.
Assemble the salad:
- Cook the pasta according to package instructions. (It's best to cook it al dente to prevent the pasta from getting mushy in the salad). Drain, rinse with cold water and drain again.
- In a large bowl, add the pasta, tomatoes, peppers, cheese and pesto. Toss to combine and serve.
Notes
- Rinse the pasta with cold water to cool it down and remove starch so it doesn't clump together.
- Use good quality extra virgin olive oil to avoid a bitter tasting pesto.
- It might seem like a lot of pesto for the salad, but some of it will absorb into the pasta, so you'll need it all.
- If you prefer to use store-bought pesto, you'll need about ¾ cup for the salad.
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Nutrition Facts per Serving
Disclaimer
Nutrition information is an estimate only and will vary depending on the substitutions made and the brands used.
Did you make this recipe or have any questions?
I love reading your comments and addressing your questions, so please leave your comments and ratings or questions below!
Dana says
I love pesto, so I really need to make this! It's a perfect summer meal. I might try it tomorrow for my picnic later in the week with my friends. I will have to use my GF pasta. Thanks for another wonderful recipe, Leanne!
Christina says
Phew, I was a little nervous about this recipe until I read you didn't make the pesto with pine nuts. I LOVE storebought pesto made with pine nuts but anytime I make homemade pesto with that nut, I can't stand it. The pine nut is too overpowering or something. Maybe I've been buying off-brand, nasty pine nuts?
However, I'm all about homemade pesto made with sunflower seeds and cashews!! YUM!
Leanne says
You know what, I've never made pesto with pine nuts! To be honest, any time I look at buying them, they are just too expensive. So I prefer to make pesto with more affordable seeds and nuts. Hope you get a chance to give this one a try Christina! Have a great week!
Dawn - Girl Heart Food says
Such a great salad, Leanne! I absolutely love pesto and it's a great way to use up odds and ends in the fridge. Cheers to a fabulous 2018!! Looking forward to seeing more of your delicious recipes 🙂
Leanne says
Thanks Dawn! Great connecting with you! Can't wait to see what you cook up in 2018 as well! Happy New Year!
Katherine | Love In My Oven says
Aw, thank you so much for the gingerbread house shout-out!! I love, love your tradition of making one in the morning! Such a fun activity! I hope you had the most wonderful Christmas - and cheers to having everything ready the day before!! XO
Leanne says
Thanks Katherine! It's a fun tradition for sure! Looking forward to trying my hand at your DIY recipe next year. Hope you had a lovely Christmas too and all the best in the New Year!
marcie says
Oh my gosh that's the prettiest bow tie pasta I've ever seen! I'd hate to sauce that up and cover it up. haha . This salad is just perfect for the holidays with those vibrant colors and pesto is one of my favorite things! I hope you had a wonderful Christmas and Boxing Day Leanne!
Leanne says
Thanks Marcie! It was a great Christmas (and Boxing Day!). I hope you are enjoying the holidays too! Believe it or not, I felt the same way about the pasta. I thought it was so pretty, I was really hesitant to cover it with pesto! But the red and green peppers and tomatoes made me feel a little better! It all turned out pretty festive looking!
Kim | The Baking ChocolaTess says
I'm a huge fan of pasta and it can go in anything, especially salads!! Love the addition of pesto sauce and feta cheese in that cute bowtie pasta! YUM!! Hope you had an awesome Christmas Leanne!
Leanne says
Thanks Kim! The pesto in this salad is so good! I had a great Christmas! Hope you did as well. Happy New Year.
Kelsie | the itsy-bitsy kitchen says
Oh my gosh. I've been on such a pesto kick lately. This sounds DELICIOUS! I hope you had a fantastic Christmas, Leanne!
Leanne says
Thanks Kelsie! It was a great Christmas! Looking forward to New Years now! I can totally relate to the pesto kick! I can't get enough of it lately! Happy Holidays!
Karly says
Festive indeed! Can't wait to try. Pinning!
Leanne says
Thanks Karly! I hope you like it!