An easy and tasty bowl of pasta tossed with fresh pesto, arugula / rocket leaves, juicy cherry tomatoes and soft mozzarella. It makes an easy, versatile and filling dinner – proving that simplicity wins when it comes to summer eating! Make my favorite pistachio lime pesto or a more classic basil pesto – the choice is yours!
In summer, we have variations of pesto pasta on a never-ending loop around here. It’s a classic! And for many families I know, it’s a kid friendly family favorite, easy to adapt to different members of the table by adjusting the mix ins for each person.
So I feel like it’s always worth putting another pesto pasta recipe out into the world, this time featuring my favorite pistachio lime pesto (though you can make classic basil pesto if you’d rather!) and a whole bag of the delightful leaf you will know as either arugula or rocket, depending on where you live in the world. It’s tossed into the pasta at the end, off the heat. So it might just start to wilt, but it still adds some texture and crispness. And it twirls up onto the fork alongside the linguine or spaghetti strands quite nicely!
Joining the arugula we have some juicy raw cherry tomatoes and fresh mozzarella, also added off the heat. So the overall temperature is warm, but not completely hot, because we have so many room temperature add-ins. This makes it perfect for a summer evening.
And the best part? It is just so simple and easy to pull together. Just get everything prepped, then make the pesto while the spaghetti cooks, and you’re eating in about half an hour.
Ingredients: What You Need to Know
- Pesto: I make a fresh pistachio lime pesto because I am obsessed with it, but a classic basil pesto is absolutely fine and delicious here too. My recipe gives options for all scenarios – just use a lemon, pine nuts and all basil if you want something more classic.
- Pasta: spaghetti or linguine are my top picks here, but a short pasta shape will still work if that’s all you have.
- Baby tomatoes: Cherry tomatoes, grape / baby plums, baby heirlooms, any tiny tomatoes are welcome here. Just make sure they’re tasty enough that you like to eat them raw.
- Mozzarella: The fresh kind stored in water is my pick here. For these photos I used mini mozzarella balls simply because they photograph a little better, but since they’re much more expensive I would normally just get a ball of mozzarella and chop it up. This also means the edges are softer and you might get them ever so slightly melting when they’re tossed into the warm pasta – which is nice!
Got Leftovers?
Lucky you! Store in the fridge and eat within 3-5 days. You can reheat it if you wish, or enjoy it cold. Obviously reheating it will change the result a little – the mozzarella will melt and the arugula will fully wilt.
Want a Creamier Pasta?
- Try avocado pesto, which is rich and creamy. The pesto from this Spaghetti Genovese Recipe is a fairly classic basil avocado pesto. The pesto from this Baked Gnocchi Recipe recipe uses pistachios, mint and cilantro / fresh coriander.
- Add a dollop of mascarpone cheese when you mix the pesto in with the pasta in Step 3. This works a treat in my Creamy Red Pepper Pesto Pasta recipe, adding a creamy sweet edge. I see no reason not to try it with a green pesto too.
More Recipes with Arugula / Rocket
Pesto Pasta with Arugula (Rocket)
Ingredients
- 9 oz (250 g) spaghetti, linguine or other long pasta shape
- 1 package (125 g) fresh mozzarella or bocconcini, typically 250g (8oz) net weight, 125g (4oz) drained weight
- 3 cups (60 g) arugula / rocket
- 1.5 cups (200 g) cherry tomatoes, halved
Pesto
- 3 tbsp raw unsalted pistachios or pine nuts
- 1 clove garlic
- ⅓ cup (50 g) parmesan, pecorino or Italian hard cheese, see notes
- 2-3 bunches cilantro, basil or some of each, see notes
- 1 lime or lemon, juiced
- ⅓ cup (80 ml) olive oil
- salt, to taste
Instructions
- Start the water boiling for the pasta and prepare the pesto while you wait. In the small bowl of a food processor or a mini food chopper, pulse the nuts, cheese, garlic and herbs a few times and then drizzle in the olive oil slowly while blending, until it's mostly smooth but a little textured.
- Start the pasta cooking according to package instructions. In the meantime, chop the tomatoes and mozzarella and grate any cheese you want for the topping.
- Once the pasta is al dente, reserve a little bit of the cooking water and drain. Add to a large mixing bowl with the pesto, and toss to combine. Add a splash of the pasta cooking water if you need to loosen up the pesto or if the pasta feels a little too dry.
- Add in the arugula / rocket and toss through to get them well mixed through the pasta and starting to wilt. Then add the tomatoes and mozzarella and toss through until just combined.
- Serve with additional cheese on top if desired. You can also add some chopped nuts for crunch, and lime or lemon wedges for squeezing if you wish.
