Sundried Tomato Pesto Pasta

Creamy and indulgent this is a veggie dish to leave you feeling moreish. Who doesn’t like a big bowl of creamy, tomato pasta with loads of grated cheese and herbs. It’s comfort food in a bowl, but since we aren’t using cream it’s light and summery, the perfect meal to eat outside with a glass of wine.

You could easily make this vegan / dairy free by leaving out the parmesan and mascarpone. It just won’t be as creamy but you could sub in whatever dairy-free alternative you like. Nutritional yeast would give this a lovely cheesy taste too.

Ingredients

Serves 4 | 705 calories per serving**

For pesto

• 125g sundried tomatoes

• 100ml olive oil (I used the oil from the jar of sundried tomatoes)

• 6-8 cloves of garlic

• small handful of fresh basil & parsley

• salt & pepper

• Juice 1/2 lemon

• 25g toasted flaked almonds (could also use pine seeds/walnuts)

• 30g grated parmesan cheese

For sauce

• 500g pasta of choice

• 1 tbsp butter (or olive oil)

• 2 cloves garlic, thinly sliced

• handful olives, sliced

• 3 heaped tbsp sundried tomato pesto

• 2 tbsp tomato pureé

• 2 tbsp mascarpone

• 2 ladles of starchy pasta water

• handful chopped basil & parsley

• 20g parmesan cheese (optional to serve)

Method

1. Heavily salt a large pot of boiling water and cook pasta according to packet instructions (if using fresh pasta, you can wait until the end to cook it but I used dried so it took about 10mins).

2. Blitz all your ingredients for your sundried tomato pesto in a food processor. You won’t need all this pesto for the recipe but it will keep in the fridge for a week. Set aside once blended.

3. In a large skillet melt your butter or oil and add your olives (or any veg you like) and garlic. Cook for 2-3 mins on a low-medium until garlic is starting to brown.

4. Add your tomato pureé & 3 heaped tbsp of sundried tomato pesto. Cook this until the oil begins to separate from the pesto. Then add your mascarpone cheese.

5. The sauce will be very thick, but don’t be alarmed. Turn down the heat and add 2 ladles of your pasta water and stir it into the sauce. Your sauce should be smooth and silky. Add your fresh herbs and some parmesan at this point.

6. Strain your pasta and add it to the sauce and serve together. Sprinkle with some extra cheese and herbs if you like.

***Calories calculated using my fitness pal and may not be entirely accurate but should serve as a general guide of caloric value of the meal