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This dump-and-bake Pesto Pasta is made from only 7 plant-based ingredients and with only 5 minutes of prep time! A cozy and fuss-free weeknight dinner.
This No-Boil Pesto Pasta Bake is made with only 5 minutes of prep time and from 7 plant-based ingredients, making it the perfect weeknight dinner! Hearty noodles, mushrooms, tomatoes, and olives simmer in a pesto-infused broth in the oven, meaning all you have to do is dump, stir, bake, and enjoy.
INGREDIENTS FOR PESTO PASTA BAKE
Like I said, you’ll only need 7 ingredients for this simple (yet hearty!) recipe:
- Dry Pasta: I used a gluten-free rotini for this recipe, but glutinous pasta will work as well. I recommend sticking with shorter pasta shapes to prevent breakage in the oven, but shells, macaroni, or penne would also work here.
- Pesto: my Vegan Nut-Free Pesto works perfectly here, but you can also use store-bought pesto in a pinch.
- Vegetable Broth: adds extra flavor to our pasta and veggies, while also providing the moisture our pasta needs to cook in the oven
- Veggies: the combination of hearty mushrooms, tangy tomatoes, and briny olives help to complement our pesto sauce.
- Nutritional Yeast: adds an extra touch of cheesy flavor! If you’d like this dish to have some heat you can also add some red pepper flakes like I did.
HOW TO MAKE NO BOIL PESTO PASTA BAKE
One of the greatest things about dump-and-bake recipes is the minimal prep time. You really only need to add everything to a casserole dish and mix well, then bake in the oven! The key to this recipe is to make sure the pasta is fully submerged in the vegetable broth before baking – this will ensure perfectly cooked noodles once the timer goes off.
- Whisk the pesto, vegetable broth, and nutritional yeast together to create our seasoned cooking liquid
- Mix in the pasta and vegetables, then cover tightly with aluminum foil.
- Bake for 40 minutes, or until the pasta is fully cooked
- Serve and enjoy! 🙂
Not only are no boil pasta recipes convenient, but they’re extra tasty too. The pasta cooks with the sauce and added vegetables so it’s infused with even more flavor! I also love how versatile these recipes are – you’re more than welcome to add or subtract the vegetables as you wish. Just try to keep the overall volume of vegetables the same, so the pasta cooks evenly.
This No-Boil Vegan Pesto Pasta Bake makes for an ideal cozy and hearty weeknight dinner, especially because it’s so fuss-free! I like to serve this alongside a light salad, but you can also get extra fancy and bring out the vegan garlic bread for a full feast. This recipe is best served fresh, but any leftovers can be stores in the fridge for up to 5 days and are best reheated on the stovetop with a splash of water in a nonstick pan.
If you’re looking for more no boil pasta recipes, you’ll also love this Chickpea Noodle Casserole and this No-Boil Vegan Mushroom Stroganoff!
Finally, if you make this recipe and decide to share it on Facebook or Instagram, don’t forget to tag me @FromMyBowl + #FromMyBowl! I love seeing your delicious recreations 🙂
PrintNo-Boil Pesto Pasta Bake
This dump-and-bake Pesto Pasta is made from only 7 plant-based ingredients and with only 5 minutes of prep time! A cozy and fuss-free weeknight dinner.
- Prep Time: 5 Minutes
- Cook Time: 40 Minutes
- Total Time: 45 minutes
- Yield: Serves 4 to 6 1x
- Category: Main
- Method: Oven
- Cuisine: American
- Diet: Vegan
Ingredients
- 1/2 cup Nut-Free Pesto
- 3 cups vegetable broth (store-bought or homemade)
- 2 tablespoons nutritional yeast
- 1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes (optional)
- 8 ounces gluten-free pasta*, I used rotini
- 8 ounces cremini mushrooms, sliced
- 1 dry pint cherry or grape tomatoes, left whole
- 10–12 Kalamata olives, sliced in half (around 1/4 cup)
- 1/4 – 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt, or to taste
- Fresh Basil, for serving (optional)
Instructions
- Prep: preheat the oven to 425F and set a 9×13″ casserole dish aside.
- Dump: add the pesto, vegetable broth, nutritional yeast, and red pepper flakes (if using) to the casserole dish and whisk well. Then, add the pasta, mushrooms, cherry tomatoes, and Kalamata olives. Mix until evenly distributed, then use a spatula or spoon to press everything down evenly into the sauce, especially the pasta noodles.
- Bake: Cover the dish tightly with aluminum foil (or parchment paper, followed by aluminum foil) and bake in the middle rack of the oven for 40 minutes. Remove from the oven and add salt to taste, if desired. If the pasta sauce appears too runny for your taste, let the dish sit for 5 or so minutes; it will thicken as it cools.
- Serve warm topped with fresh basil, or as desired. Leftovers can be stored in the fridge and are best eaten within 5 days.
Notes
- Substitutions: store-bought pesto can be used instead of homemade. Any variety of pasta can be used here, but I recommend using shorter shapes to prevent breakage. The added veggies can also be swapped or omitted, but I would keep the overall volume about the same — otherwise the pasta will not cook evenly.
Keywords: pesto pasta, vegan pesto pasta, no boil pasta vegan, pesto casserole vegan
Slowly winning my carnivore boyfriend over with vegan deliciousness.
★★★★★
That’s great news, Stephanie! 😊
Just made this. It was amazing! I add 2 Field Roast Apple Sausage sausages. Just chopped them up and added to the dish. Very flavorful! My grocery store only had 1 package of basil so we added some kale to the basil to get it to the right volume for the pesto. Didn’t have pumpkin seeds to I used pecans instead. Husband loved it and said we need to add this one to the top of the recipe list!
★★★★★
Thanks, Jen! So glad to hear you loved it. 🙂
This recipe looks delicious! Do you think it would work to add some type of beans for a little protein (great northern for example)?
Thank you, Katerina!
Yes, you could toss a can or two of beans in there!
Made this tonight for the first time and it came out sooo delicious! I used homemade stock, and skipped the olives for now but added some chopped kale from my garden. I used Barilla brand gluten free pasta which made the entire dish feel rich and creamy (not mushy like some other gf pastas can be!). Will definitely be making this again!
★★★★★
I’m happy you enjoyed it! Loved that you put your own twist to it, too! ♥
This recipe is so good and great for customizing depending on what veggies you have on hand.
★★★★★
Thank you for this recipe. Delicious and the pasta tasted better than when boiled and then baked. Also thank you for introducing me to adding nutritional yeast to recipes (I know I am late to the game). A versatile and easy recipe.
★★★★★
For those who are GF, what pasta did you all use? I tried Aldi’s rotini and it came out so gummy! Sadly the pasta ruined the dish for us. I’d love to give this recipe another shot– maybe with rice instead next time? I have to say the nut-free pesto was incredible!
I’m not sure what is in Aldis rotini, but I would recommend using a brand made with either brown rice or corn. I have also made this with Banza chickpea pasta
Made this today with a mix of red lentil + chickpea rotini and frozen broccoli florets. Delicious!
★★★★★
This was SO easy and really delicious! It also opened up my mind for tons of other variations that could be made- it is a super flexible recipe. Thank you Caitlin!
★★★★★
Incredibly easy and so delicious! My husband is obsessed!!
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Hi, we are meat eaters but just found your channel and this looks amazing. Can it easily be doubled or would it overflow the pan? Our boys are big eaters and this wouldn’t make enough for dinner. Thx!
Doubling might be a bit too much for one pan! Both size wise and cooking consistency, if you’ve got two of the same sized pan plus adding a little extra cook time that would be the way to go!
Yum! I love this. I have never considered adding pesto to a pasta bake. It must have tasted amazing!
★★★★★
This recipe is incredible! I made it once at the beginning of the week and within days just had to make it again! So simple and so delicious!
★★★★★
Worthy of a restaurant!My husband and I completely adore and devored this receipe! Wow, we are impress!
★★★★★
Thank you so much!
This is delicious, and so fast to make! I find nutritional yeast takes on a funny taste when I cook it so I just sprinkled it over the top along with some lemon juice. Delicious!
★★★★★
It really does change the flavor and can see how it might be off putting to some. But glad you’re doing it the way you like it!
I used vegan chikn’ stock and it turned out so good! Such a delicious and easy recipe!
★★★★★
You mention mushrooms but it doesn’t say how much…
Hey there! The mushrooms were on the recipe list but the formatting got messed up. Fixed it now! It’s 8 ounces of cremini mushrooms, sliced.
I omitted the cherries & olives and put in fresh asparagus. Ohhh my goodness. This may have replaced the one pot stroganoff as my favorite dish.
★★★★★
So happy to hear you’ve been enjoying the recipes!
I love these dump & bake recipes. I’m excited to try this one! I’ve done some of the rice based ones in the instant pot so to be able to not worry about an oven timer. It looks like there is a slight typo in the recipe – the mushroom line is combined with the pasta line and does not have its own bullet point.
Fixed! Thanks for the heads up.
How much dry pasta is needed?
We used 8 ounces!