Description
This light and fresh Pea and Arugula Pesto Pasta Salad is the perfect meal or side dish that is easy to make, healthy and delicious!
Ingredients
Scale
- 1 lb whole wheat rotini
- 4 cups loosely packed arugula leaves
- 2 cups fresh or frozen peas, thawed
- 2 cups packed arugula leaves
- 1 cup fresh or frozen peas, thawed
- 2 Tbsp fresh mint leaves
- 3 cloves garlic
- 1/4 cup pine nuts
- 1/3 cup freshly grated microbial-rennet Parmesan cheese
- 2 Tbsp lemon juice
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1/4 tsp black pepper
- 1/3 cup olive oil
Instructions
- Step 1: Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil and cook pasta according to the package directions. Drain the cooked pasta.
- Step 2: In the bowl of your food processor, add arugula, peas, mint leaves, garlic, pine nuts, microbial-rennet Parmesan cheese, lemon juice and salt/pepper and pulse until finely chopped. Then with the motor still running, add olive oil in a slow stream until emulsified and creamy.
- Step 3: In a large bowl, toss together warm pasta with pesto, arugula and peas. Season with cracked black pepper and a little extra microbial-rennet Parmesan, serve and enjoy!
Notes
The homemade pesto also tastes great on top of pizza, works as a salad dressing and is a great topping for steak or chicken. For make-ahead, store the cooked pasta and pesto separately and toss together right before serving.
- Prep Time: 10 minutes
- Cook Time: 15 minutes
- Category: Side Dish
- Method: Boiling, Blending
- Cuisine: American
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 serving
- Calories: 322 kcal
- Sugar: 4.7 g
- Sodium: 128.1 mg
- Fat: 19 g
- Saturated Fat: 2.9 g
- Unsaturated Fat: 16.1 g
- Trans Fat: 0 g
- Carbohydrates: 30.5 g
- Fiber: 5.8 g
- Protein: 8.8 g
- Cholesterol: 2.9 mg
Keywords: pea and arugula pesto, pasta salad, healthy, whole wheat rotini, spring salad