Lately, the weather has had me down in the dumps and craving winter fare…but today is a different story. The sun is shining and my spirits are up, which means I’ve been inspired to prepare some “summer” fare!
Lunch is all about channeling summer with this simple, refreshing pasta packed with roasted veggies and creamy pesto sauce.
One of my favourite ways to prepare vegetables is by roasting them. The caramelization gives them such a sweet flavour that baby (and you) will love! This recipe is perfect for the entire family to enjoy, whether you add the veggies to pasta, purée them to make a pasta “sauce ” (for those finicky eaters out there) or eat them on their own as a healthy side dish.
(Yields about 4 cups)
1 medium red onion
1 medium red pepper
1 large eggplant
2 medium zucchini
2 tbsp. homemade pesto (or store-bought)
2 tbsp. extra-virgin olive oil
salt and pepper to taste
Parmesan cheese for garnish
pasta of choice (quantity as desired)
*I prepared the veggies then made “Ditali” for my son and some penne for my husband and I. TWO meals in one with tons of leftovers!
Set oven to 400 degrees.
Chop veggies into 1-2 inch cubes (the size doesn’t matter as long as they’re all uniform so they cook evenly). Place in a large baking sheet, add olive oil, salt and pepper, and mix (with your hands is best!) to coat all the veggies.
Cook for 30-40 minutes or until the veggies are fork tender then set aside.
In the meantime, (while the veggies are in the oven) bring water to a boil in a large pot then add the pasta and cook according to package instructions.
*TIP: Remember to add some salt (to taste) to the pasta water before adding the pasta to give it some extra flavour. No one (especially Italians) likes bland pasta!
Once the pasta is cooked, reduce the heat to low, drain the pasta (setting aside about 1/4 cup of the cooking liquid) then return to the pot. Add the roasted veggies and pesto to the pot and warm through for a few minutes to combine all the flavours and coat the pasta.
*TIP: If the pasta is too dry simply add one tablespoon at a time of the cooking liquid, (which will make a “sauce”) until the pasta is well coated.
Although the veggies are soft enough for older babies to eat you also have the option to purée their portion of veggies or mash them with a fork before adding to the pasta.
Alternatively, purée the veggies in a food processor then store in baby cubes in the freezer. Defrost when needed and add to pasta, rice, or quinoa dishes.
Garnish with another dollop of pesto and some freshly grated Parmesan.
This looks so good Lisa! I’m so impressed with your recipes. Your ability to constantly create meals that are new, exciting and extremely healthy!
I’ve only tried Pesto once, and I don’t think it’s fair to say I totally don’t like it so this recipe does looks really good, so I think I’ll try it. Thanks for sharing.
This is a dish that I have never tried before. I really like pesto so it sounds like a great option!
I love pasta, roasted veggies and pesto, so this right here is a comfort dish for sure! I will be making this during the week for dinner and I’m sure even the kids will love it.
I do lots of pasta salads and sometimes it almost like cleaning out the frig. I add what needs to be used up.
I think that’s the best way to use up leftover ingredients!
I could really go for a yummy pasta salad like this. Roasted veggies are always a big hit around my house.
It’s one of my favourite ways to cook them…it really brings out their sweetness!
We enjoy pesto and the veggies would be a delightful addition! Plus it’s healthier. This sure looks like a very tasty recipe, can’t wait to try it!
Will definitely try this too soon! Love this recipe of yours!
My husband loves his veggies, he would be so pleased with this for dinner. Definitely going to try it.
Oh this looks wonderful with all the veggies. Roasting them is one of my favorite methods.
Mine too! They are so flavourful that way!
That looks delicious and all chalk full of veggies! I love pesto too!
My kids (and I) absolutely love pesto!!
pasta salads make me happy, gonna make this one this weekend. I love the color of it all
It is very colourful, actually 😉
I love pasta salads! This one looks really good and flavorful because of the roasted veggies. Need to try this.
I love how the veggies meld together in this recipe. I would add a few others in there to give it more umph….
What would you add? I’ve added capers and pine nuts and they are also delicious in this dish.
This looks so good and I am not just saying that because it’s time to eat! I can’t wait to try this recipe out and see how my family likes it.
Yum. This looks delicious. I love pesto, so I know I’d love this. I bet my kids would too. They are HUGE pasta fans!
My kids love pasta too…whichever way I make it!
My mouth is watering. Can you tell it’s lunch time over here? I’d totally make this but omit the onions 🙂
Lol! You could definitely omit the onions without altering the flavour.
Looks really yummy, I am not good with eating veggies alone as I always want meat with it but this looks too delicious
I’ve also pureed roasted veggies and made a pasta ‘sauce’ for the kids for those times that they weren’t interested in their veggies!
This looks really delicious and healthy. Thank you for the detailed cooking directions as I’m not a highly skilled cook.
No problem, I would like the think they are detailed so that’s great to hear!
Yumm! That looks really good! We love pesto so we’ll definitely have to try this recipe.
I love pesto, and this dish looks very healthy with all of those veggies.
That definitely sounds like a meal I would love to eat. I do love my pasta and I also love veggies-although I have never tried roasting veggies for me.
Oh, I would love that! I love that it has all of those veggies, so that it’s good for you and tasty too!
Pesto is my second favorite Italian pasta sauce and I love that type of noodle too! What I love most is the heavy usage of good veggies! I will give this a try. Thanks for the yummy recipe!
It is actually my first! 😉
Pesto is so easy to make and adds such a powerful punch to the flavor of pasta. I’d love to tries this roasted veggie pesto pasta!
Yes, it is!! I don’t think people realize that either 😉