Roasted courgette pesto pasta
Serves: 4
![Roasted courgette pesto pasta](/uploads/media/720x770/02/11632-courgette-rigatoni.jpg?v=1-0)
Recipe photograph by Dan Jones
Roasted courgette pesto pasta
This healthier pesto pasta involves roasting and then blitzing courgettes to give you a soft, sauce-like result without the need for lots of oil
Serves: 4
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Nutritional information (per serving)
Calories
490Kcal
Fat
19gr
Saturates
5gr
Carbs
57gr
Sugars
4gr
Fibre
6gr
Protein
21gr
Salt
0.4gr
![Abigail Spooner](/uploads/media/100x100/06/10586-Abi.jpg?v=1-0)
Abigail Spooner
Abi is our former Junior Food Editor. An obsessive foodie with a sweet tooth, she is happiest when baking and is a firm believer that there is always room for dessert (preferably following a big bowl of pasta)
See more of Abigail Spooner’s recipes
![Abigail Spooner](/uploads/media/100x100/06/10586-Abi.jpg?v=1-0)
Abigail Spooner
Abi is our former Junior Food Editor. An obsessive foodie with a sweet tooth, she is happiest when baking and is a firm believer that there is always room for dessert (preferably following a big bowl of pasta)
See more of Abigail Spooner’s recipes
Ingredients
- 1 x 500g pack courgettes
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- 50g young spinach
- 2 garlic cloves
- 2½ tbsp lemon juice
- 75g Parmesan (or vegetarian alternative), finely grated, plus extra to serve
- 1 x 30g pack basil
- 50g toasted pine nuts
- 300g rigatoni, or other tubular pasta
Step by step
- Preheat the oven to 240°C, fan 220°C, gas mark 9. Trim the ends of the courgettes, then cut in half lengthways and slice into half-moons. Tip onto a large baking tray, toss with the oil and some seasoning. Roast near the top of the oven for 15 minutes until golden and tender. Bring a large pan of salted water to the boil.
- Meanwhile, put the spinach, garlic, lemon juice, Parmesan, basil and most of the pine nuts in a food processor.
- Once the courgettes are out of the oven, add the pasta to the pan of boiling water and cook according to pack instructions. Allow the courgettes to cool for 5 minutes, then add to the other ingredients in the food processor. Pulse until the mixture resembles a chunky pesto. Season to taste.
- Drain the pasta then stir in the courgette pesto. Divide between four bowls, top with the reserved pine nuts and scatter with extra Parmesan.