Creamy Pesto Pasta Bake
Looking for a fun and delicious pasta recipe to make this week? Try my creamy pesto pasta bake. This easy pesto pasta recipe is a riff off of the famous TikTok feta pasta. Simply combine all of the ingredients in an oven-safe dish and bake it. Then, toss in your cooked spirali pasta and you have a tasty meal in under 40 minutes. Plus, you’ll only need one pan so cleanup is a breeze.
This recipe post is sponsored by Delallo Foods. I was compensated for my time, however, all opinions are my own.
About this recipe
Made from fresh ingredients, this creamy pesto pasta bake recipe is a breeze to prepare. For starters, I used Delallo Food’s jarred basil pesto. I love this pesto because it is so flavorful. Loaded with pine nuts, basil, parmesan cheese and a few other clean ingredients this pesto is my favorite. Plus, let’s face it, after a long days work it’s nice to keep things simple and use a jarred pesto vs. homemade.
I also used Delallo fine chopped garlic and olive oil in this recipe. As you know, I am obsessed with their products. Everything is high-quality and carefully sourced. Resulting in the most delicious meal every single time.
As far as a pasta cut goes, you can use whatever you like. I used Delallo’s spirali cut pasta for this recipe. This shape is great because it soaks up all of the creamy sauce. Not to mention, it’s super cute and fun to eat. Top with some fresh grated parmesan (guess where it’s from?) and you have a creamy pesto pasta bake that everyone will enjoy.
Feel free to dress this dish up with some of my suggested garnishes and add-ins below. I added toasted pine nuts, lemon zest, red pepper flakes and a few turns of cracked black pepper. It was fabulous! This recipe makes four dinner servings. Please see below for nutritional information.
Storage
Store any leftovers in an airtight container in the refrigerator for three to four days. Reheat in the microwave until heated through.
Creamy Pesto Pasta Bake
Equipment
- pot to boil pasta
- colander
- 8×8-inch ceramic baking dish
Ingredients
Creamy pesto pasta
- 10-12 ounces Delallo Spirali pasta
- ¼ cup Delallo simply pesto, traditional basil
- 1 tablespoon Delallo extra virgin olive oil
- 4 ounces cream cheese
- 1 cup shallot, diced, white onion will work but shallots are recommended
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 1 tablespoon Delallo fine chopped garlic
- ½ cup heavy cream, or 2% milk but heavy cream is recommended
Add-ins / garnishes
- ¼ cup Delallo Parmesan cheese wedge, freshly grate as a garnish
- ¼ cup toasted pine nuts
- 1 tablespoon fresh lemon zest and lemon wedges
- red pepper flakes
- black pepper
- arugula
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.
- Spray an 8×8 ceramic baking dish with cooking spray. Set it aside.
- Boil a pot of water and cook the spirali pasta according to the package. Al dente preferred. Drain off the water using a colander and drizzle the pasta with a very light coating of olive oil to prevent sticking. Set it aside.
Prepare the sauce:
- Grab the prepared baking dish and add the cream cheese to the bottom of the dish.
- Next, add the diced shallots, pesto, chopped garlic, olive oil and salt.
- Bake uncovered for 25 minutes.
- Remove the cheese mixture from the oven and begin to stir in the heavy cream. Once the sauce is creamy and smooth, add the cooked pasta.
- Toss everything together until the pasta is well coated in the sauce.
- Top with grated parmesan cheese, red pepper flakes, arugula and a few turns of cracked black pepper.
- Serve hot!
