Name: Green Pesto Pasta Casserole
Prep time: 30 min
Cook time: 20 min
Total time: 50 min
Cuisine: Vegan
Ingredients: ½ cup cashews; 1 8-oz. package of chickpea pasta; 3 cups spinach; 1 cup basil, tightly packed; 2 garlic cloves, minced; 1 TBSP lemon juice; ¼ tsp Himalayan sea salt; 2 TBSP avocado oil; 2 to 4 TBSP filtered water; 2 TBSP nutritional yeast; 1 cup frozen peas; 2 cups frozen broccoli; 1 pint cherry or grape tomatoes, halved

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Green Pesto Pasta Casserole with chickpea noodles, homemade pesto sauce, and green veggies baked to perfection. The best workweek dinner!

As a kid, my favorite colors were pink and purple.

If I ever had a choice between colors of backpacks and pens and school notebooks, pink or purple was my favorite shade.

As a teenager, I begin to. gravitate towards blue because it felt safe, cool, and inconspicuous.

As a twenties something, I loved teal and coral.

The pairing together made my heart happy and I made it the theme of my outfits and my wedding colors.

Now that I’m in my 30’s, I am in love with the color green.

From the sage of my yoga mat to the mint of my planner to the evergreen of my favorite cozy sweatshirt.

Sometimes when my cell phone case and Kindle cover color and blouse are all matching it feels like a problem, but, hey, I like what I like!

Which is why I *love* the dozens of plants scattered around the perimeter of our main level.

The color green transforms the space from empty and generic and stale to something alive: a living room.

I always look for green on my plates, too.

(Sometimes, I even heat up some steamed broccoli to serve with a monotone takeout meal for a little color…

Which I do realize defeats the purpose and gift of takeout, haha.)

Which is why I loved the idea of this Green Pesto Pasta Casserole from first glance.

It’s made in a casserole dish with chickpea noodles, homemade pesto sauce, and green veggies baked to perfection.

This is the best workweek dinner for colder weather no matter what your favorite color is!

What You Need to Make Green Pesto Pasta Casserole

This green pesto pasta casserole is easy to make with ingredients from your pantry and freezer.

Here’s what you need:

cashews
chickpea pasta
spinach
basil
garlic cloves
lemon juice
Himalayan sea salt
avocado oil
filtered water
nutritional yeast
frozen peas
frozen broccoli

That’s it!

How to Prep Pesto Pasta Casserole

Preheat the oven to 400°F and prepare a baking sheet with parchment paper.

Prepare a large casserole dish and set aside.

Bring a large pot of water to a boil on the stovetop.

When the water is boiling, add in the pasta and cook according to package directions.

I used chickpea pasta for this recipe for extra protein, cut you can use any pasta that sounds good to you.

How to Make Vegan Pesto

Drain and rinse the pasta and then return it to the pot.

Add the spinach, cashews, basil, garlic, lemon juice, salt, avocado oil, and nutritional yeast in a food processor or high speed blender.

Process everything until it’s smooth and creamy, pausing to scrape down the sides as needed.

You want the pesto to by smooth and thin for this recipe, not thick and chunky.

Add the pesto to the same pot with the pasta.

How to Make the Green Veggies

Add ½ cup water to a medium-sized saucepan and bring to a boil.

Add in the frozen pea and broccoli and return to a boil.

Cover with a lid and allow to simmer for 6-8 minutes, or until the vegetables are vibrant green and just fork tender.

Drain well, then add the steamed vegetable to the pot with the pasta.

Toss the pasta and vegetables with the pesto and stir everything well to combine.

How to Bake Green Pesto Pasta Casserole

Transfer the mixed pesto pasta to the casserole dish and sprinkle with more nutritional yeast.

Bake the pasta casserole for 10 to 20 minutes, or until the pasta starts to brown slightly on top and get crunchy on the edges.

Enjoy immediately!

Notes on Meal Prep

This Green Pesto Pasta Casserole is perfect for meal prep!

I love to bake a pan and reheat portions for dinner during the busy workweek.

It stores well in the refrigerator and doesn’t get dried out because of the green pesto sauce on top!

Store leftovers in an airtight container in the refrigerator and reheat before serving.

No matter how many days later, it always feel like a warm hug straight from the microwave.

How to Serve Green Pesto Pasta Casserole

Enjoy this Green Pesto Pasta Casserole as the coziest cold weather comfort food.

Make a pan to share for a holiday entrée or side, or prep the casserole dish and enjoy it for yourself all week long.

I highly recommend topping it with lots of nutritional yeast and or vegan parm.

You can mix up the green vegetables by adding in your favorites.

For a little extra acidity and color, I love adding blistered cherry or grape tomatoes on top.

Enjoy!

More Vegan Casseroles

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XO Lauren