Pesto Pasta with Spinach and Tomato
This pesto pasta with spinach and tomato is the thirty-minute weeknight dinner that tastes like genuine effort and requires almost none. Pasta cooked al dente and tossed in a full jar of basil pesto with a splash of olive brine that transforms the sauce from good to exceptional, fresh spinach wilted into the warm pasta, and two kinds of tomatoes layered through everything.
A Quick Look At The Recipe
- Recipe Name: Pesto Pasta with Spinach and Tomato
- Main Ingredients: pasta of choice, basil pesto, cherry tomatoes, fresh spinach leaves, fresh tomatoes, olive brine, Salt and pepper, Olive oil
- Why You'll Love It: This pesto pasta with spinach and tomato tosses pasta in jarred pesto and olive brine with roasted cherry tomatoes, fresh tomatoes, and wilted spinach for an easy, vibrant dinner ready in 30 minutes.
The olive brine is the ingredient worth highlighting specifically. A couple of tablespoons of the brine from a jar of olives stirred into the pesto pasta adds a briny, slightly salty, deeply savory note that makes jarred pesto taste significantly more complex and layered than it does straight from the jar. It is the kind of small addition that makes people ask what makes this pasta taste so good and the answer is something most people already have sitting in their refrigerator.
Why You’ll Love This Recipe
Thirty minutes and mostly pantry and refrigerator ingredients. Roast the tomatoes, cook the pasta, toss everything together. This is one of the most effortless impressive pasta dinners in any weeknight rotation.
The olive brine elevates the jarred pesto into something that tastes made from scratch. Two tablespoons adds a briny, savory complexity that completely changes the character of the finished sauce.
Two kinds of tomatoes produce two completely different flavor and texture contributions in the same bowl. Roasted tomatoes are jammy, concentrated, and slightly caramelized. Fresh tomatoes are bright, juicy, and clean. Together they make every bite more interesting than either one alone.
Fresh spinach wilted into warm pasta adds greens, color, and a slight earthy note that balances the richness of the pesto without requiring any separate cooking.
Ingredients Needed to Make Pesto Pasta with Spinach and Tomato
Simple, pantry-forward ingredients. Here is what you need.
The Pasta and Sauce
Any pasta shape works. Short shapes like penne, rigatoni, or fusilli trap the pesto in their ridges and produce the most evenly sauced result. Long pasta like spaghetti or linguine works equally well for a more classic presentation. One jar of basil pesto is the primary sauce. Olive brine from any jar of olives in the refrigerator adds the briny, savory depth that makes the sauce exceptional. Reserved pasta water loosens the pesto into a silky consistency.
The Tomatoes
Cherry tomatoes roasted at 400Ā°F until blistered and burst add a jammy, caramelized, concentrated tomato flavor that fresh tomatoes alone cannot produce. Fresh diced or halved tomatoes added at the end add a bright, clean, slightly acidic freshness alongside the roasted ones.
The Greens
Fresh spinach leaves added to the warm pasta wilt from residual heat into tender, slightly earthy greens that add color and nutrition without any additional cooking time.
How to Make Pesto Pasta with Spinach and Tomato
1
Preheat the oven to 400Ā°F. Spread the cherry tomatoes on a small rimmed baking sheet. Drizzle generously with olive oil and season with salt and pepper. Roast for 15 to 20 minutes until the tomatoes have blistered, burst, and developed slightly caramelized edges. Remove and set aside with all their juices.
2
Bring a large pot of generously salted water to a full boil. Add the pasta and cook according to package directions until al dente. Before draining, use a measuring cup to scoop and reserve at least 1/2 cup of the starchy pasta water. Drain the pasta.
3
Return the drained pasta to the warm pot over low heat. Pour the entire jar of pesto over the pasta. Add the olive brine. Toss until every piece of pasta is evenly and generously coated in the sauce. Add a splash of the reserved pasta water and toss again to loosen the sauce into a silky, smooth coating that clings to every piece.
4
Add the fresh spinach leaves directly to the hot dressed pasta. Toss continuously until the spinach wilts completely into the pasta from the residual heat of the pot.
5
Gently fold in the roasted cherry tomatoes with all their juices and the fresh diced or halved tomatoes. Taste and adjust salt and pepper as needed. Serve immediately.
Pesto Pasta with Spinach and Tomato
Ingredients
- 1 lb pasta of choice
- 1 jar basil pesto
- 1 pint cherry tomatoes for roasting
- 2 cups fresh spinach leaves
- 1 cup fresh tomatoes diced or halved
- 2 tbsp olive brine
- Salt and pepper to taste
- Olive oil for roasting
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 400Ā°F. Place the cherry tomatoes on a small baking sheet, drizzle with olive oil, and season with salt and pepper. Roast for 15 to 20 minutes until blistered, burst, and slightly caramelized. Set aside.
- Cook the pasta in a large pot of generously salted boiling water according to package directions until al dente. Reserve 1/2 cup of pasta water before draining.
- Return the drained pasta to the warm pot over low heat. Add the entire jar of pesto and the olive brine and toss until every piece of pasta is evenly coated. Add a splash of the reserved pasta water to loosen the sauce if needed.
- Add the fresh spinach leaves and toss until wilted into the warm pasta.
- Fold in the roasted tomatoes and fresh diced tomatoes gently.
- Taste and adjust salt and pepper as needed. Serve immediately.
