Easy Pasta Primavera with Pesto

This easy pasta primavera recipe is loaded with crisp veggies, tender penne, and a delightful pesto that brings restaurant-style flavor to your own kitchen. It’s a healthy garden pasta that’s dairy free, vegan-friendly, and full of fresh vegetable goodness. Great for springtime or summer meals when you need quick 30 minute meals that still feel special. Pin the best pasta primavera recipe now so you always have a veggie-packed dinner ready to go!

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Why this is the best easy pasta primavera

This healthy pasta primavera recipe is simple and easy. Boil the pasta, sauté the veggies, then simmer everything together for a couple of minutes. That's it.

Pasta primavera is very quick to put together. This is a 30-minute recipe, easily.

This recipe uses just a few common, inexpensive ingredients. This recipe is very simple and is perfect for cleaning out your produce drawer. You can buy the fresh veggies specifically for the primavera, or you can just dump all the odds and ends from your produce drawer into the pot. It's up to you!

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Vegan pasta primavera is very healthy. This recipe is almost all veggies, and there is no added sugar. You can feel good about feeding this pasta to your kids because it's loaded with nutrients! (It's still healthy if you add the cheese.)

This pasta primavera recipe is very versatile. You can use any pasta, any veggies, and any sauce to make this recipe. All you need to do is follow the steps below using your choice of ingredients, and you will have an amazing and super healthy pasta dish ready to serve in under 30 minutes!

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This recipe is allergy-friendly and appropriate for special diets. This recipe, as written, contains dairy, gluten, and nuts, but it is easy to modify. It is egg-free and soy-free as written. The cheese is optional, and if you leave it out or use vegan Parmesan cheese, the recipe is dairy-free and vegan. You can make it gluten-free by using gluten-free pasta. You can make it nut-free by making your own pesto (see link below) or using an aglio e olio sauce (instructions below) instead of the pesto. Because it is made with pasta, this recipe is likely not good for a keto or bariatric diet plan. As always, check the labels on your specific ingredients to ensure they are safe for your personal dietary needs.

Pasta primavera uses mostly fresh, whole foods that are as close to the vine as you can get.

What you'll need to make vegan pasta primavera

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See the printable recipe card at the bottom of the page for all measurements and nutritional information.

• Penne pasta or whatever shape pasta you prefer
• Extra virgin olive oil - I learned in Italy that extra virgin olive oil comes from the first press of the olives, and that's why it has so much flavor. There is also virgin olive oil (second press) and plain olive oil (third press).
• Whole zucchini or yellow squash - I like these sliced in half rounds, but you can cut your zucchini however you want.
• Sweet onion - I love the flavor of sweet onions when they're cooked slowly over a low heat. As their name implies, they do get sweet and tender and delicious. That said, feel free to use whatever onion you have on hand. Red onion is mild and would be nice in this pasta recipe.
• Snow peas - I like the crunch of snow peas, but you could use sugar snap peas or green beans as well.

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• Fresh garlic or garlic scapes - Garlic scapes are only available for a couple of weeks in the late spring to early summer, and typically only in the northern US and southern Canada. This is because they grow from hard-neck garlic which does not grow in warmer climates. (Not sure about other parts of the world.) Garlic scapes are typically available only in farmer's markets; I've never seen them in a grocery store. If you've never used garlic scapes before, head over to this page for some tips and more delicious recipes.
• Whole green onions - You will use both the green and the white parts.
• Prepared pesto - I used to use the pesto sparingly, just to give the pasta a hint of flavor. Then I went to Italy and ordered gnocchi with pesto sauce - and I swear the gnocchi was drowning in pesto. There was so much pesto that there was a puddle left at the end (to sop up with my bread)! And let me tell you something, that was the best gnocchi of my life. From that day on, I started putting tons of pesto in my pasta, and it is amazing!
  Sometimes I use pesto from a jar, and sometimes I make my own using this recipe. Most pesto is made with fresh basil and pine nuts, but I've had a hard time finding pine nuts locally. The recipe I linked is made with walnuts instead. I can always get walnuts, so I stick to that recipe even though it is less authentically Italian.
• Feta cheese or Parmesan cheese - This is optional, and obviously, if you are looking for a dairy-free or vegan pasta primavera, you would leave it out. But if you can do cheese, I highly recommend the feta as its tanginess pairs really nicely with the pesto.

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How to make quick & easy pasta primavera

1. Prepare pasta according to package directions in a large pot of boiling water, subtracting 2 minutes from the al dente cooking time. (Pasta tastes best when boiled in salted water, but you should add the salt after it is boiling and not before.)
2. Heat olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the peas and sweet onions (not the green onions) and let them cook for a few minutes.
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3. Add in the squash and cook until the veggies are just beginning to soften. You want them to have a bite in the finished dish - no mushy zucchini!
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4. Drain the pasta, and reserve a cup or two of the cooking liquid in the pot. Return the pasta to the pot over medium heat. Add a tablespoon or two of olive oil and stir the pasta to distribute it throughout.
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5. Transfer the cooked veggies to the pasta pot.
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6. Add the spring onions and garlic or garlic scapes and stir through.
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7. Toss pesto in a few heaping tablespoons at a time until your desired pesto-iness is achieved. Everyone's tastes are different. I used about a cup all together in these photos.
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   Note – I have since been to Italy where they serve pasta drowning in pesto - and it tastes so great! Since then, I have started using two to three times more pesto in my pasta. If you try it, you won't go back to using it sparingly!
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8. If desired, just before serving, sprinkle each serving with 1 ounce of feta cheese.
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Variations and substitutions

Pasta primavera is an exceptionally versatile dish. You can use any veggies, any pasta, and any sauce.

Pasta is pasta, and any shape will work well in this recipe, including spaghetti or fettuccine. Cook it according to package instructions.

I used zucchini, onion, and peas in this recipe because that's what I had on hand the first time I made it. You can use literally any fresh or frozen vegetable. Sliced red bell peppers, green beans, carrots, broccoli, cauliflower, mushrooms, asparagus, cherry tomatoes - the sky is the limit. You can buy produce specifically for this recipe, but I tend to make it when I have veggies that I need to use up before they spoil. It's a great recipe for fridge clean out day!

You can roast vegetables instead of sautéing them. That will change the flavor of the dish and make it even more delicious.

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I like pesto pasta primavera, but you could also use a red sauce (here's my gran's homemade spaghetti sauce recipe or use a jar), alfredo sauce, or an oil and garlic sauce. If you're not using pesto or a prepared sauce, you may want to add a tablespoon of Italian seasoning for flavor.

To make a simple oil and garlic sauce (also known as aglio e olio in Italian), heat a third cup of extra virgin olive oil in your largest skillet over medium heat. When the oil is hot (but not smoking! If it smokes, it's burned, and you need to start over.), add 8 sliced garlic cloves (sliced, not pressed) and cook for 2 minutes. For a little extra flavor, you can add up to a teaspoon of red pepper flakes with the garlic. The next part is tricky and must be done very carefully. Add 2 cups of reserved pasta water to the skillet. When you add water to hot oil, it splatters like crazy so put on an apron to protect your clothes and be very careful. Bring the oil and water to a boil, then turn the heat down and simmer for 3 minutes. (Simmer means little bubbles only, no big ones.) Add the cooked pasta and veggies to the sauce and simmer a few minutes more, until most of the liquid has evaporated. Drizzle with a high quality extra virgin olive oil and season with salt, pepper, and additional red pepper flakes to taste.

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If you're not making a vegan pasta primavera recipe, you can sauté some sliced chicken breasts or thawed shrimp and add that to the pasta with the veggies.

Storing leftovers

Transfer leftover pasta primavera to an airtight container or zippered plastic bag and keep it in the refrigerator for up to 5 days. Reheat in the microwave or in a skillet with additional olive oil.

Even though you stirred some olive oil into the pasta and added pesto, it will dry out in the fridge. You will likely need to add additional olive oil or pesto when you warm it up.

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Here are a few more vegetarian meals you might like:

• Crustless Zucchini Quiche
• The Best Cheese Stuffed Zucchini
• Zucchini Noodles with Garlic, Lemon, & Parmesan
• Spicy Oven Baked Omelet
• Cheese & Green Chile Frittata
• Spinach Pasta with Creamy Red Sauce

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