This pesto pasta salad is a summer dish that’s perfect for a picnic or get-together. It’s easy to make, and everyone will love it! The pesto sauce is made with broccoli stalks to give a vibrant emerald color, as well as give a nutritional boost, plus traditional pesto ingredients, such as garlic and basil. It’s great as a side dish or even as an entree! Top with extra cashews and cheese for some extra flavor!
Broccoli is a great vegetable to eat. I love broccoli! In addition to being a great source of fiber, this versatile veggie carries lots of vitamin C and vitamin A, as well as some iron, calcium, and potassium. Blend this into a classic pesto along with some of the pasta cooking water, broccoli gives this pesto sauce just a bit of creaminess and a lot more yum. Blanching the broccoli makes it easier to blend together and creates a more aromatic sauce. Make sure to save some of the broccoli to add to the salad!
How to make Broccoli Pesto Pasta Salad
This is a simple recipe that requires a tiny bit of your time, but not all of it! Most of it is letting the pasta and broccoli cool down.
- Broccoli: I used raw broccoli as opposed to frozen. You want to have the fresh broccoli to blanch, plus you need the stalks and florets for the pesto. I don’t know how the pesto will come out with the frozen broccoli, so use it at your own discretion.
- Rotini Pasta: You can sub this out for gemelli, orechiette, or campanelle. Basically, any macaroni shape that will hold the sauce.
- Fresh Basil
- Sun-Dried Tomatoes
- Cashews or Pine Nuts
- Parmesan Cheese: You can sub this out for pecorino-romano cheese.
- Garlic
- Salt
Bring water to a boil in a large pot with some salt, blanch the broccoli stalks first, then add the florets so it all cooks evenly. Add the broccoli to a bowl of ice water to shock the broccoli. Let it sit in the water for 5 minutes so it completely cools off, then drain and pat dry with paper towels. Do not discard the water. Add the pasta to the boiling water and cook according to the package directions. Once the pasta is done, reserve 1/2 cup of the cooking water, then drain the pasta. Toss the pasta in some oil, then spread it onto a baking sheet so it’ll cool faster. In a food processor, add the broccoli stalks plus 2-3 florets, basil, cashews, parmesan, garlic, and salt. Pulse a few times until smooth, scraping down the sides of the bowl as needed. Add about 5-6 tablespoons of olive oil and process until thoroughly combined. Toss the pasta in the broccoli-pesto sauce along with the remaining broccoli and sundried tomatoes. Top with extra cashews and cheese. Serve.
Tips & FAQs
- Is reserving the pasta cooking water really necessary? If you skip this step, you won’t get that creamy, smooth sauce to toss the pasta in. This is a key ingredient. If you haven’t started adding some pasta water to your pasta dishes, then are you really living? The starchy, seasoned water emulsifies with whatever fat your pasta sauce may have.
- Can this be made ahead? You can make the pesto up to 3 days in advance and store it in the refrigerator. Just be sure to add the reserved pasta water to the pesto when you boil the pasta. Make the pasta the day before. When you’re ready to toss the pasta into the sauce, heat the pasta up for 30 seconds in the microwave, toss in oil then in the sauce.
- How about a twist? You can roast the broccoli after blanching, then add some lemon zest and juice to the pesto! Lemon goes great with roasted broccoli.
- Dairy-free/Gluten/Vegan option: Omit the Parmesan, or use vegan parmesan. Omit the cashews if you have a nut allergy. This can be made gluten-free with gluten-free pasta, however, the pesto is naturally gluten-free.
Want the recipe? Click print below! Let me know how it came out for you by tagging me on Instagram (@missravenskitchen) and using #missravenskitchen! Follow my Facebook page for updates as well! Let me know if I need to tweak anything.
Broccoli Pesto Pasta Salad
Ingredients
- 1 lb raw broccoli, florets cut into 1-inch pieces, stalks peeled, and sliced into 1/4-inch pieces
- 1 lb rotini pasta
- 2 cups fresh basil
- 3/4 cup roasted cashews, divided
- 2 cloves garlic, peeled
- 1/4 cup parmesan cheese
- 6-7 tbsp olive oil
- Salt & pepper, to taste
- 5 oz sundried tomatoes, chopped finely
Instructions
- Bring a large pot of water to a boil with 1 tbsp of salt. Fill a large bowl halfway with water and add ice to create an ice bath; set aside. Add in the broccoli stalks, and cook for 2 minutes. Add the florets in and cook for 3 minutes more. Using a slotted spoon, remove the broccoli and shock them in the ice water. Do not discard the boiling water. Let the broccoli sit in the water for 5 minutes until chilled, then drain and pat dry with paper towels; set aside.
- Add the pasta to the boiling water and cook according to the package directions. Drain the pasta, reserving 1/2 cup of the cooking water. Toss the pasta with 1 tbsp of olive oil, then spread onto a rimmed baking sheet so it cools faster, about 15 minutes.
- In a food processor, process the broccoli stalks plus 2-3 florets of the broccoli, basil, 1/2 cup of roasted cashews, garlic, and parmesan cheese until smooth, about 30 seconds. Add 5-6 tbsp of olive oil and process until creamy and thoroughly combined. Chop the rest of the cashews.
- Toss the pasta with the broccoli pesto and the reserved cooking water until it evenly coats the pasta. Stir in the sundried tomatoes and remaining broccoli. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Top with extra cheese and leftover cashews.
- Serve immediately or chill before serving.
Nutrition Facts
Calories
600Fat (grams)
30Sat. Fat (grams)
3Carbs (grams)
73Fiber (grams)
6Net carbs
0Sugar (grams)
13Protein (grams)
15Sodium (milligrams)
420Cholesterol (grams)
0
Miss Raven's Kitchen 
Leave a comment