Okay, this one is a bit of a splurge, especially considering my tight September Challenge budget, but after last week’s meat-heavy menu I was craving bright fresh flavors. This Parsley Pesto Pasta is about as vibrant as it gets and the blistered cherry tomatoes on top give the dish a pop of color and a sweet finish to compliment the earthy garlic and Parmesan. It’s a little pricey, but I made it work.
What’s in Parsley Pesto?
Fresh pesto is usually a pretty pricey endeavor, thanks to the fresh basil, Parmesan, olive oil, and pine nuts. So to make my own budget pesto, I make a few substitutions. First, I use inexpensive parsley instead of basil. Second, I skip the pine nuts all together. I find that Parmesan has enough nuttiness to give me the flavor I need. But if you happen to have walnuts on hand, you can add a handful to the pesto for even more rich, nutty flavor. Fresh lemon zest also gives this parsley pesto quite a flavor boost, but if you don’t have room in your budget for that, you can use bottled juice and just forget the zest (I’ve done it in the past and it still gets a passing grade).
Put an Egg On It
“Put an egg on it” is my unofficial slogan because I add an egg to just about everything I eat. They’re fast, easy, inexpensive proteins and they are exactly what this parsley pesto pasta needed to round it out and make it a full meal. That silky yolk mixes in with the pesto fo an unbelievable flavor and texture combination.
Of course, if you’re not that into fried eggs you can add your egg in just about any form. Soft boiled eggs would be great, or if you’re not into the runny yolk thing you could just do a simple scrambled egg.
Parsley Pesto Pasta with Blistered Tomatoes
Servings 5Ingredients
Parsley Pesto
- 1 bunch fresh parsley ($0.77)
- 1/2 cup grated Parmesan ($0.69)
- 2 cloves garlic ($0.16)
- 1/4 tsp salt ($0.02)
- 1 fresh lemon ($0.79)
- 6 Tbsp olive oil ($0.96)
Blistered Tomatoes
- 1 Tbsp olive oil ($0.16)
- 2 pints grape tomatoes ($4.00)
- salt and pepper to taste ($0.05)
Bowls
- 1 lb. pasta (any shape) ($1.00)
- 5 fried eggs (optional) ($1.60)
Instructions
- Rinse the parsley and drain well. Pull the leaves from the stems and place them in a food processor with the Parmesan, garlic, salt, zest and juice from half the lemon (about 2 Tbsp juice). Pulse the ingredients until they are finely chopped. Slowly add the olive oil through the spout while the processor is running until a smooth paste forms. Set the pesto aside.
- Heat a large skillet over medium flame. Add one tablespoon olive oil, then tilt the skillet to coat the surface. Add the tomatoes and cook 7-10 minutes, stirring occasionally. Avoid stirring the tomatoes too often to allow them time to blister on the hot skillet. As they cook the skins will burst and the tomatoes will release juice, which will thicken into a semi-sweet glaze. Season with salt and pepper to taste.
- Bring a large pot of water to a boil for the pasta. Cook the pasta in the boiling water according to the package directions, or until al dente. Reserve a small amount of the starchy cooking water, then drain the pasta in a colander. Allow the pasta to cool slightly, then return it to the pot (with the heat turned off). Add the pesto, then toss to coat. If the pasta is too dry or clumps, sprinkle a little of the reserved cooking water on top to loosen.
- Divide the pasta among five bowls, top with a scoop of the blistered cherry tomatoes, scraping up some of the sweet glaze from the skillet as well. Top each bowl with a fried egg, if desired.
See how we calculate recipe costs here.
Nutrition
Scroll down for the step by step photos!
How to Make Parsley Pesto Pasta with Blistered Tomatoes – Step by Step Photos
Begin with the pesto so that it’s ready to go when the pasta is finished cooking. Rinse 1 bunch of parsley and let it drain well. Pull the leaves from the stems and place them in a food processor with 1/2 cup grated Parmesan, 2 cloves of garlic, 1/4 tsp salt, and the zest and juice from 1/2 of a lemon (about 2 Tbsp juice).
Pulse the ingredients until they’re finely chopped and granular. This mix is actually a “gremolata” at this point, which is also very good with pasta and meat, but we’re going to add some olive oil to make it more smooth and help it coat the pasta.
While the food processor is on, slowly pour olive oil in through the spout until it’s a smooth paste. The first time I made this pesto, I used 1/2 cup olive oil. Today I found that I was able to get away with only 6 Tbsp, which helped bring the cost down a little more. Set the pesto aside until you’re ready to use it.
Rinse two pints of cherry tomatoes.
Heat a large skillet over medium heat, then add 1 Tbsp olive oil. Tilt the skillet to spread the oil over the surface, then add the tomatoes. Cook the tomatoes in the hot skillet, only stirring occasionally, until they are soft and wrinkly. Avoid stirring too often to allow the skin to blister on the hot skillet. The skins will blister and crack, allowing some of the juices to escape. The juices will thicken as they cook into a sweet glaze. Season the tomatoes with salt and pepper to taste.
Bring a large pot of water to a boil for the pasta. Cook one pound of pasta according to the package directions (boil for 7-10 minutes), or until al dente. Reserve a little of the starchy pasta water, then drain it in a colander. Allow the pasta cool a little, then return it to the pot (with the heat off). Add the prepared pesto.
Toss the pasta in the pesto. Allowing the pasta to cool a little helps prevent the Parmesan from melting and sticking to the bottom of the pot. You want it on the pasta, not the pot. ;) Add a little of the reserved pasta water if the pasta is too dry and sticks in clumps.
To build the bowls, divide the pasta between five bowls, then top with a scoop of tomatoes, and a fried egg if desired. Because I’m going to be eating this throughout the week, I portioned out the pasta and tomatoes into individual containers, but will fry the egg fresh for each meal.
Expensive for the September Challenge, but still insanely cheap compared to your local deli.
Excellent, Ms Beth! Had some (very dear) pine nuts in the freezer so added those instead of walnuts —magnificent. I know that this makes terrific lunches the next and next day, but we had to dine out one day and tonight, my husband fixed something else. Can this dish be frozen? I made it (I think 4 days ago) and it still smells and tastes wonderful! But this is when I usually freeze something. Help?
Hi Lea! My only concern with freezing is that it may get kind of dry. Other than that, it should hold up fine to freezing. :)
I’m going to make this tonight, but with zucchini noodles, roasted red peppers added to the blistered tomatoes, and leftover rotisserie chicken mixed in protein (my husband isn’t a fan of eggs.)
I love using blistered cherry or grape tomatoes to add great flavour to a dish. Luckily they are usually very inexpensive where I live, and a pint costs about $2. I use them a lot, not just in pasta dishes, but stews and chilis, and sometimes as a veggie on their own sprinkled with a little parmesan.
This was tasty and very easy to make!
When you make it in advance, how do you reheat the tomatoes? Or do you just eat it cold? I’m partially wondering if I could bring some to work for lunch but we only have a microwave.
I just microwaved the whole dish (pasta and tomatoes) until warm, then topped it with a freshly fried egg. But I ate it without an egg sometimes, too. :)
I was looking to use up the end-of-season cherry tomatoes from the garden and this was the chosen recipe. I’m so glad I made it! I added a handful of walnuts to the parsley pesto and a couple tablespoons of water to get the blender moving. I took another commenter’s suggestions and drizzled balsamic on the tomatoes. Everything was delicious! I also adore how colorful this dish is.
This looked so good that I had to make it. I tried it last night, and it was fantastic! Really easy to make. I do have to say, 2 pints of cherry tomatoes wasn’t nearly enough for a whole pot of spaghetti. Next time I’ll probably double the quantity. I think it’d be fantastic with sauteed chicken breasts. Will definitely make again
This is the second recipe I have tried from your blog, after the Peanut Stew, and it’s another winner! Never tried Parsley pesto before but it’s delicious, especially with the tomatoes.
Thank you for helping me start my mission to cut my food budget.
This recipe is so delicious!! My husband and I both loved it!! I can’t wait to make it again!!!
My husband and I LOVE this! We’re on day three of leftovers and are so sad that they’ll be running out tonight. :( I personally love love loved how garlicy and fresh it tasted! Thanks, Beth! :)
Oh yum!! I just harvested all of our basil out of the garden (winter is coming!) and turned it into pesto (I ended up with 8 cups of basil!!! I used 1 1/2 cups of parmesan cheese, and a whole cup of pine nuts). Now I have a ton of pesto in the freezer, yum.
I’ve made this recipe before: http://vancouver.ediblefeast.com/recipes/spaghetti-roasted-cherry-tomatoes
Super super splurgy, but *so* good. I didn’t make it this year (poor timing), but I think we made it twice last year. Yum yum yum.
So jealous of your basil! :D