This creamy pesto pasta bake made with Alfredo sauce is a game-changer! It's a vegetarian baked pasta that can be made in under 40 minutes, is loaded with veggies, and a mix of cheese including burrata! Serve it for the holidays or on a weeknight. Your family and friends will love it.
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Creamy Pesto is dreamy
You may have mixed white and red sauce to make orange sauce pasta but have you tried mixing pesto with white sauce? I feel it's a combination worth trying. I have always wanted to try this combo and I must confess that I love it!
The addition of white sauce gives a cheesy, gooey, and creamy texture to the otherwise dry pesto pasta. That's why it makes it a dreamy combo. Baking the pasta is the additional step that takes the flavors up many notches because that's when the burrata and mozzarella cheese go in.
This vegetarian baked pasta recipe can be as easy and quick as you want it to be. It's full of flavor and tastes like fancy takeout. If you are a pasta lover, then do give this recipe a try!
Pasta is my weakness
Pasta is one such dish that can be made with anything you have at hand! It's a comforting one-pot meal using ingredients that are easily available in our homes. It's also a dish that kids and adults love. I make some kind of pasta once a week. It's part of my weekly menu planning.
Mushroom Spinach Pasta Salad, Broccoli Pasta, and Indian Curry Pasta are three dishes that I always make on repeat! I like my pasta dry and KR prefers saucy pasta. This Alfredo Pesto Pasta along with Tortellini Casserole are dishes that got added to this list.
Why make this
- It's a holiday/festive recipe
- It's also a recipe perfect for busy weeknights
- A vegetarian baked pasta recipe
- Is gluten-free
- Very easy to put together
- Made with simple everyday ingredients
- Can easily be made vegan
- Make it using 12 ingredients
- Can be made ahead of time
Ingredients needed 🧾
Pasta - I have used gluten-free elbow pasta in this cheesy pesto bake recipe. You can use any type of pasta like ziti, penne, shells, tortellini, ravioli, farfalle, bowtie, bucatini, rigatoni, etc. To make it keto, use a low-carb pasta variety.
Veggies - This recipe is very customizable. I have added spinach and onions to this recipe. Feel free to add more veggies like mushrooms, broccoli, green peas, bell peppers, cherry tomatoes, etc, if needed.
Pesto and White sauce can either be homemade or store-bought. When buying pesto, pick the one that's in the fresh refrigerated aisle rather than the ones in the pasta aisle because it tastes better. You can also use milk, half and half, and cream instead of white sauce.
Spices and seasonings - Italian seasoning, red pepper flakes, and jalapenos are what you will need to make this Alfredo Pesto Pasta.
Cheese - The whole idea is to mix up a variety of cheese. I have used mozzarella, burrata cheese balls, and Parmesan cheese to make this vegetarian-baked pasta drool-worthy. You can also add pecorino Romano cheese.
Pine nuts give this baked pasta a slight crunch. You can also add any other chopped nuts instead.
Besides these ingredients, I prefer to use extra virgin olive oil whenever I am making pasta. But feel free to use any
How to make it 🔪
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- Cook pasta as per the instructions on the packet. Cook them al dente.
- Heat olive oil in a pan, and fry the pine nuts till they turn light golden.
- Add the onions and jalapenos to the pan and cook till the onions turn translucent.
- Now add the spinach and cook till they soften. This could take 2 minutes.
- Add the pesto and white sauce. Give it a mix and cook for 2-3 minutes. Add half a cup of milk or pasta water if you feel the sauce gets too dry. Let the whole mixture come together and reduce a bit.
- Next, add the seasonings - red pepper flakes and Italian seasoning. Mix.
- Add the cooked pasta. Mix.
- Then add the Parmesan cheese and cracked black pepper. Mix it all together. Check and add salt if needed. Take it off the flame.
- Grease a baking dish with butter.
- Spread half the cooked creamy pesto pasta over it. Pour half a cup of milk over it if you feel the pasta looks dry.
- Top it with half of the mozzarella cheese and one broken burrata cheese. Bake it in the oven at 350 degrees F for 20 minutes or until the edges are golden brown and the cheese is bubbly. There is no need to cover it but if you want, cover it with aluminum foil before putting it in the oven.
- Remove from oven and set your oven to broil. Broil the pasta for an additional 1-2 minutes or so to get the top extra golden. Take it out of the oven and serve.
- Repeat the same steps to make the second batch.
Serving suggestions 🍽
I just adore simple meals like this. All the flavors get to shine in this recipe. This is the kind of dish that you would want to enjoy while curled up on the couch, watching something on Netflix. How I wish they served this at restaurants too!
This baked pesto pasta with burrata cheese will be a great addition to your holiday dinner table (think Diwali, Thanksgiving, and Christmas), on date nights, for potlucks, parties, brunches, special occasions, and also on weeknights! Great meal after a long Monday at work!
If wondering what to serve with this cheesy Alfredo pesto pasta? Sides like breadsticks, Garlic Bread, tomato soup, cheddar scones, cucumber salad, or cherub tomato salad, or drinks like Cucumber Lemonade, Orange Lemon Sherbet, or Cherry Lemon Iced Tea will go well with it.
Top recipe tips 💭
Adding a variety of cheese helps bring out the cheesy flavor. I baked it in 2 batches because of the size of my baking tray. If you have a larger tray, you can just make one batch. Add whatever veggies you have at hand. You can also add some sources of protein like edamame, chickpeas, lentils, etc. Even vegetarian meatballs are a good addition!
You can make part of the pasta recipe in advance and store it in the fridge. Add the burrata and mozzarella cheese and then bake this pesto pasta in the oven just before serving to keep the flavors fresh and warm.
Recipe FAQs 📖
If you have leftovers, you can keep them in an airtight container in the refrigerator for 5-6 days. It will dry up. Add some milk and then reheat in the microwave until warm. This recipe also freezes very well. Put the leftover pasta in an airtight, freezer-safe container and store in the freezer for at least 6 months.
You can also freeze individual components separately. If freezing pesto, just remember to add ¼” of olive oil on top after filling the jars and placing them into the freezer. This prevents the basil from oxidizing. When freezing cooked pasta without the sauce, drizzle some olive oil to prevent it from drying.
Use vegan pesto and white sauce. If using milk and cream, use unsweetened dairy-free milk and plain creamer. Nowadays, you easily get vegan cheese in the market that you can use. Nutritional yeast can also be added to give the vegan creamy pesto pasta a cheesy flavor.
More pasta recipes
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Recipe 📖
Creamy Pesto Pasta Bake
Equipment
- 1 pan
Ingredients
- 12 oz gluten-free pasta
- 2 tablespoon pine nuts
- ½ cup chopped onion
- 1 jalapeno
- 2 cups spinach
- 1 cup Alfredo white sauce
- 7 oz pesto
- ½ tablespoon red pepper flakes
- ½ tablespoon Italian seasoning
- ⅓ cup Parmesan cheese
- 2 balls burrata cheese
- ⅓ cup mozzarella cheese
- 1 cup milk optional
- salt
Instructions
- Cook pasta as per the instructions on the packet. Cook them al dente.
- Heat olive oil to a pan, fry the pine nuts till they turn light golden.
- Add the onions and jalapenos to the pan and cook till the onions turn translucent.
- Now add the spinach and cook till they soften. This could take 2 minutes.
- Add the pesto and white sauce. Give it a mix and cook for 2-3 minutes. Add half a cup of milk if you feel the sauce gets too dry.
- Next add the seasonings - red pepper flakes and Italian seasoning. Mix.
- Add the cooked pasta. Mix.
- Then add the Parmesan cheese and cracked black pepper. Mix it all together. Check and add salt if needed. Take it off the flame.
- Grease a baking dish with butter.
- Spread the cooked creamy pesto pasta over it. Pour half a cup of milk over it if you feel the pasta looks dry.
- Top it with half of the mozzarella cheese and one broken burrata cheese. Bake it in the oven at 350 degrees F for 20 minutes or until edges are golden brown and cheese is bubbly. Chef Tip - There is no need to cover it but if you want, cover it with an aluminum foil before putting it in the oven.
- Remove from oven and set your oven to broil. Broil the pasta for an additional 1-2 minutes or so to get the top extra golden. Take it out of the oven and serve.
- Repeat the same steps again to make the second batch.
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