Fiery Pesto Pasta
These tender noodles are laced with a fiery blend of tomato sauce, pesto, and minced jalapeno! The sauce is creamy, savory, and perfectly spicy. Made with a handful of ingredients and ready in minutes, this is the perfect meal for any busy night.
If you like heat, you’ll love this pasta dish! You can make it as spicy as you want, based on how much jalapeno you add. I added the entire pepper for more heat, but you can add half, or even less. For extra heat, use a habanero instead!
This sauce contains very few ingredients but it’s extra flavorful. That’s because we jazz up tomato sauce with basil pesto – an herby combination of basil, pine nuts, garlic, and parmesan cheese. When you put the two together, you instantly create a mouth-watering sauce with great depth.
I used rigatoni pasta, but any shape works here. I love ridged mezzi rigatoni because the little ridges hold extra sauce. That said, you can use your favorite shape – from spaghetti and linguine, to penne, shells, bowties, and elbows. Gluten-free pasta works too.
Don’t forget to save some pasta water! We use 1/2 cup of the water used to cook the pasta to finish the sauce, so make sure you save some! Pasta cooking water is starchy and fabulous and helps add heft to the sauce. I always put a ladle in my colander so I don’t forget!
Use a high-sided skillet so you have room for the pasta! There’s nothing worse than pasta falling all over your cooktop while you’re stirring! Use a high-sided skillet or saucepan to make the sauce; when you add the pasta you’ll have plenty of room to stir!
Fiery Pesto Pasta
Ingredients
- 1 pound pasta of choice, I used mezzi rigatoni
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1/2 cup chopped onion
- 1 jalapeno pepper, seeded and minced
- 15- ounce can tomato sauce
- 1/4 cup prepared basil pesto
- Salt and freshly ground black pepper
- Grated parmesan cheese for serving
- Crushed red pepper flakes for serving
Instructions
- Cook the pasta according to the package directions, drain, reserving 1/2 cup of the pasta cooking water.
- Meanwhile, heat the oil in a large skillet or saucepan over medium-high heat. Add the onion and jalapeno and cook for 3 to 5 minutes, until soft. Add the tomato sauce and pesto and bring to a simmer. Reduce the heat to low and simmer for 10 minutes (or until the pasta finishes cooking). Add the pasta with the reserved pasta cooking water and stir to combine. Season to taste with salt and black pepper. Serve with parmesan cheese and crushed red pepper flakes.