I came up with this Pasta al Pesto Bake recipe when I was nannying for the sweetest family in New Orleans. I met them at the start of my dietetics program when I was looking for work to bring in some money during my free time.
Lucky me, I met the most wonderful family of three who needed some after school care. They are vegetarian, and they are a busy family!
Some nights I would prepare dinner for them so that they had something waiting for them after coming home from a long workday. The challenge was putting something together that they all enjoyed equally.
Enter: Pasta al Pesto Bake with Roasted Broccoli.
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Pesto al Pasta Bake with Roasted Broccoli
This recipe was one of the first dishes that I made for them. As you can see in the image above, I left it with a note telling them how to finish preparing it in the oven when they were ready to eat dinner.
Little did I know, this pasta al pesto bake would become a staple in their household. To this day, I will occasionally get a text from my former employers (they now feel like family) saying “made your pesto pasta bake tonight!”.
Customize It
Don’t have the time or feel like going to the store to prepare a pasta bake? You really don’t need to if you have some basic ingredients on hand.
- The sauce: While this dish is called Pasta al Pesto, you can absolutely use any sauce that you have on hand. I’ve made a version of this meal before using Rao’s Arrabiata Sauce and it was chef’s kiss.
- The veggies: Once again, use what you’ve got. If you happen to have bell peppers, zucchini, or eggplant at home, roast that up instead. You’ll just need to rework the oven roasting time and potentially the temperature in Step 3 of the recipe.
- The pasta: Quite literally anything will work here as far as the pasta goes, but I tend to think that smaller pastas work best. I really like using a penne, bowtie, or rigatoni.
- The dairy: To make this pasta al pesto vegan, you can easily just swap in your favorite dairy-free cheeses. It’s pretty easy to find vegan shredded mozzarella in grocery stores these days, and nutritional yeast would make a great sub for the parmesan cheese.
- The flavor: I kept this recipe fairly simple because, as I noted above, it is intended to satisfy an entire family. A family with very different palates and preferences. But you can feel free to go rogue and add whatever you want – caramelized onions, garlic, sun-dried tomatoes, and basil would all be great additions.
If you have any questions or you try this recipe and you’d like to leave feedback, leave a comment below! Enjoy.
Pesto al Pasta Bake with Roasted Broccoli
Ingredients
- 16 oz dried pasta bowtie pasta works particularly well here
- 2 heads broccoli chopped into florets
- olive oil
- 1.5-2 cups mozzarella cheese shredded
- 1/2 cup parmesan cheese grated, shredded works too
- salt and pepper to taste
- 1 pinch red pepper flakes optional
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 400° F.
- Boil a large pot of water with a couple generous pinches of salt. Cook pasta according to package directions until al dente (Note: pasta should still have a slight firmness to it because we are going to continue cooking it in the oven!)
- On a baking sheet or two drizzled with olive oil, place broccoli florets in a single layer. Coat in olive oil, sprinkle with a dash of salt and pepper, and bake for 15-20 minutes or until broccoli is nicely browned and slightly crispy.
- In a large casserole dish, layer olive oil, pasta, broccoli, and shredded mozzarella cheese until you've used up all of your ingredients. Top with mozzarella, parmesan, red pepper flakes, and a dash of black pepper.
- Bake, uncovered, at 375° F for 10-15 minutes or until cheese is golden brown and bubbly. Serve immediately! Leftovers can be kept in fridge for up to 5 days and they reheat perfectly.
Looking for more ideas? Take a look at my recipe archives.
I could not resist commenting. Well written!