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Easy Weeknight Recipes

Vegan Plus Bacon

Easy Pesto Pasta

This is one of those easy weeknight dinners you can throw together without a lot of measuring or prep, and you can grab almost everything at Trader Joe’s! Start with fresh gluten-free pasta and creamy vegan kale pesto, then choose your veggies, protein, and favorite cheesy topping. Make it with chicken meatballs, keep it vegan, load it with veggies, or use whatever you already have in the fridge.
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Prep Time 10 minutes
Cook Time 15 minutes
Total Time 25 minutes
Servings: 4
Course: Main Course
Cuisine: American, Italian
Calories: 625
Ingredients Method Notes

Ingredients
  

  • 1 package Trader Joe’s Gluten Free Fresh Pasta
  • 1 container Trader Joe’s Vegan Kale Cashew & Basil Pesto
  • 1 package chicken meatballs or vegan meatballs of choice
  • 3 –4 cups vegetables of choice such as zucchini, broccolini, broccoli, mushrooms, bell peppers or onions
  • 1 tablespoon avocado oil
  • Salt and black pepper to taste
  • Garlic powder or fresh garlic to taste
  • Onion powder or fresh onion to taste
  • ¼ –½ cup shredded Parmesan Violife dairy-free Parmesan, or nutritional yeast, for serving

Method
 

  1. Prep your veggies.
  2. Chop your vegetables into bite-sized pieces. Heat the avocado oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the vegetables and season with salt, pepper, garlic and onion to taste. Sauté until tender and lightly browned.
  3. Air fry the chicken or vegan meatballs at 375°F for 6 minutes, or about 8 minutes if you like them a little crispier.
  4. For smaller pieces and even more crispy edges, cut the meatballs into halves or quarters before air frying. You can also pan-fry or bake them according to the package directions.
  5. Prepare the gluten-free fresh pasta according to the package directions. Drain, then immediately return the noodles to the warm pot.
  6. Add the vegan kale pesto to the warm noodles and gently toss until the pasta is evenly coated.
  7. Add the cooked vegetables and meatballs directly to the pesto pasta and toss everything together, or keep the components separate and let everyone build their own bowl.
  8. Finish and serve.
  9. Top with shredded Parmesan, dairy-free Parmesan or nutritional yeast and serve warm.
  10. Make it vegan: The Trader Joe’s gluten-free fresh noodles contain egg, so they are not vegan. Substitute your favorite vegan pasta, spaghetti squash or zucchini noodles. Use vegan meatballs or skip the meatballs altogether.
  11. Make it dairy-free: Use dairy-free Parmesan, nutritional yeast or simply leave the cheese off. Trader Joe’s Vegan Kale, Cashew & Basil Pesto is dairy-free.
  12. Make it nut-free: Trader Joe’s vegan pesto contains cashews. Swap it for my homemade Spinach Basil Pesto, which is dairy-free and nut-free.
  13. No dietary restrictions? Use whatever pasta and pesto you love. The Trader Joe’s vegan kale pesto is still worth trying, it sneaks some extra veggies into dinner!
  14. Switch up the protein: Try chicken meatballs, vegan meatballs, grilled chicken, chicken sausage, white beans or whatever sounds good that night.
  15. Switch up the veggies: Zucchini, broccoli, broccolini, mushrooms, bell peppers, spinach, chard, squash and onions all work beautifully. This is also a great clean-out-the-fridge meal.

Notes

The quantities in this recipe are intentionally flexible. Add more vegetables for a veggie-heavy bowl, extra meatballs for more protein, or adjust the pesto depending on how saucy you like your pasta.
If the pesto pasta seems a little thick, add a splash of warm pasta water and toss until it reaches your desired consistency.