This rich courgette pesto pasta is the perfect way to use a glut of courgettes. The sauce is made by blending roasted courgette with fresh basil. It creates a wonderfully savoury and smooth pesto that’s both healthy and delicious.

No vegetable epitomises early summer like the humble courgette. Every year around June-July, gardens start to explode with these bulbous vegetables. A single plant is quite prolific in the output it can produce.

Excitement at the new produce quickly turns to dread when the mountains of courgette start piling up in the kitchen larder. If one is not careful, you’ll fast become overwhelmed by the quantities of summer squash in your seasonal dishes.

I have developed a remedy to this yearly conundrum, my courgette pesto pasta. This speedy and delicious vegan pasta dish uses up not one, not two, but six good-sized courgettes. This recipe is a lifesaver for using up past their best squash that can line the back of my fridge.

The sauce made by the courgette is wonderfully rich and savoury. You’ll be amazed at how creamy the pesto comes out and how few fats and oils it uses. It’s the perfect sauce for those looking for a lighter pesto that has fewer calories than usual.

However, don’t let this courgette pasta’s nutritional properties fool you. It doesn’t sacrifice any flavour. I’ve paired this pasta with a blend of tart roasted cherry tomatoes. The acidity and sweetness of the tomatoes against the courgette help cut through the rich sauce and balance the flavours. In other words – it tastes great!

So here’s me hoping this dish helps you with the age-old culinary dilemma – what should I do with all these courgettes? Now you have the answer, make pasta. Or is that the answer to just about everything?

If you like this courgette pasta you’ll love

• Spinach pesto pasta with crispy breadcrumbs
• Creamy lemon and broccoli pasta
• Sun dried tomato and aubergine pasta

Tomato And Courgette Pesto Pasta

This rich courgette pesto pasta is the perfect way to use a glut of courgettes. The sauce is wonderfully savoury and creamy, yet surprisingly healthy and low-calorie.

5 from 1 vote

Prep Time 10 minutes

Cook Time 30 minutes

Total Time 40 minutes

Servings 6

Course Main Course, Pasta

This meal is around 92% less polluting than the average UK meal.

Eating this recipe will save around 2.69 KG CO2e per person.

That’s equivalent to the emissions produced driving 22.26 KM in a modern car.

How do I calculate this?

Ingredients

• 1.5 kg Courgette (cut into 1cm think slices)
• 2 Cloves Garlic (roughly chopped)
• 30 g Basil
• 2 Tablespoons Olive oil
• 2 Tablespoons Nutritional yeast
• 1 Teaspoon Sea salt
• 300 g Cherry tomatoes
• 500 g Pasta (cooked to packet instructions until aldente)

Instructions

• Preheat your oven to 200˚c/392˚f (fan oven).
• Place the 1.5kg of sliced courgette and 2 cloves of chopped garlic on a large baking tray. Cover with 2 tablespoons of olive oil and a little sea salt. Place into the oven and roast for 30 minutes until soft and taking on a little colour.
• When the courgette has around 15 minutes left to cook. Arrange the 300g of cherry tomatoes on a baking tray and place them into the oven with the courgette. Roast for 10-15 minutes until they start to burst and release their juices.
• Once the courgette has cooked pour them and the garlic into a food processor or blender. Add the 30g of basil, 2 tablespoons of nutritional yeast and 1 tablespoon of sea salt. Then blend into a thick sauce.
• In a large mixing bowl combine the courgette pesto and 500g of cooked pasta. Toss to coat the pasta evenly.
• Plate the pasta in individual bowls and add a handful of roast tomatoes to each serving.

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