Julie Clark
Updated:
Pesto Pasta Bake
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Pesto pasta bake is the perfect Meatless Monday recipe that the whole family will love. An easy 30 minute dinner recipe loaded with basil flavor.
This pesto baked pasta is a simple pasta casserole recipe that has cooked pasta dressed in a basil pesto sauce, and topped with ricotta cheese, spinach, tomatoes, and lots of shredded mozzarella cheese. It bakes in a small 8×8″ pan.
About this Basil Pesto Pasta Bake:
Meatless Monday recipes can seem daunting, but with recipes like our one pot pasta and our rigatoni with tomato Parmesan sauce to fill in your menu plan, we know it’s going to turn into a favorite night of the week.
The basil in pesto is what gives it its green hue. Make your own pesto easily by throwing everything into a food processor, or use store-bought pesto. I love Classico brand from Meijer or Costco’s basil pesto.
Also, this baked pasta recipe is a caprese lovers dream! If you like our chicken caprese pizza or chicken caprese, this recipe is for you. You can even drizzle balsamic glaze over your serving to mimic the caprese salad.
Enjoy! – Julie
Pesto Pasta Bake
Pesto pasta bake is the perfect Meatless Monday recipe that the whole family will love. An easy 30 minute dinner recipe.
Servings 6
Prep Time 10 minutes
Cook Time 20 minutes
Total Time 30 minutes
Ingredients
- 8 ounces cooked penne or short noodles
- 6 ounces pesto sauce
- 1 cup fresh baby spinach (chopped)
- ¾ cup ricotta cheese
- 2 cups mozzarella cheese (shredded)
- diced tomatoes for garnishing
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 375º Fahrenheit. Spray an 8×8-inch casserole dish with cooking spray.
- In a large bowl, toss together cooked pasta and pesto sauce. Spread into the prepared pan. 8 ounces cooked penne or short noodles, 6 ounces pesto sauce
- Layer spinach over the pasta and add dollops of ricotta cheese over the pasta. Top with shredded cheese. 1 cup fresh baby spinach, ¾ cup ricotta cheese, 2 cups mozzarella cheese
- Bake for 20 minutes or until cheese is melted. Garnish with diced tomatoes if desired. diced tomatoes
Notes
- You can use low fat ricotta and low fat mozzarella if you’d like.
- Use gluten free noodles for a gluten free dinner!
- This can also bake in a 9×13-inch baking pan.
- Refer to the article above for more tips and tricks. The calories shown are based on the recipe serving 6, with 1 serving being ⅙ of the pasta. Since different brands of ingredients have different nutritional information, the calories shown are just an estimate. **We are not dietitians and recommend you seek a nutritionist for exact nutritional information. **
Nutrition
Calories: 336kcal | Carbohydrates: 16g | Protein: 15g | Fat: 23g | Saturated Fat: 9g | Cholesterol: 47mg | Sodium: 529mg | Potassium: 105mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 2g | Vitamin A: 1430IU | Vitamin C: 1mg | Calcium: 305mg | Iron: 1mg
Ingredients For Pesto Pasta Bake
There are just seven ingredients for this easy pesto pasta bake.
- penne pasta or rotini, cooked
- ricotta cheese (or cottage cheese)
- jar of pesto sauce (or homemade sauce)
- fresh baby spinach, roughly chopped
- grape tomatoes, halved
- mozzarella cheese, shredded
See the recipe card for full ingredients and amounts.
How To Make Pesto Pasta Bake
- Cook the noodles. For this pesto bake, cook the noodles to just under al dente. Remember, the noodles will continue to cook when it bakes.
- Once the pasta is cooked, toss into a bowl with pesto sauce. Stir to coat. Be generous with your sauce, you can also add in a tablespoon of olive oil if you like your casseroles a little on the moister side.
- Next, pour your pesto coated noodles into a well-greased baking dish and sprinkle over the spinach, tomatoes, and dollops of ricotta cheese on top.
- Finally, top your pesto pasta bake with shredded cheese and bake for 20 minutes or until the cheese is melted. Garnish with fresh basil and grated parmesan cheese after baking.
Recipe Variations
- Get creative and add in mushrooms, small pieces of broccoli, eggplant, zucchini or black olives if you’re working on a pantry and fridge clean out.
- Gluten-free pasta or chickpea pasta makes this dish gluten free!
- Add cooked shrimp, diced cooked chicken or shredded rotisserie chicken for added protein.
- Add a teaspoon of red pepper flakes for extra heat and flavor.
Storage Instructions
Place any leftovers of this pasta casserole into an airtight container and refrigerate up to three days.
To reheat this pasta casserole, you can portion out what will be eaten and either microwave it or place on an oven safe pan and bake at 350º Fahrenheit for about 15-20 minutes, or until it heats through.
Top leftovers with additional shredded cheese when reheating the pasta casserole. Fresh melted cheese is always best.
What to serve with pesto pasta bake?
This pasta casserole is hearty on its own. For a side dish, I would suggest potato leek soup or strawberry spinach salad and finish it off with a fresh fruit salad or s’mores dip in the oven for dessert!
Hi! I’m going to make this dish and noticed that the recipe doesn’t include the tomatoes nor do the instructions. I’ll wing it this time but wanted to let you know. Take care 😊
This looks AMAZING!!! I will definitely try this at home.
Just can’t wait to try this and have them all..
Thank you so much for sharing this recipe.
Keep sharing:)