10 Ingredient Sun Dried Tomato Pesto Pasta with crispy, sautéed kale and walnuts | Gluten Free + Vegan

I can’t even begin to tell you how much I love this pasta. I think I’ve fixed myself a bowl of this Sun Dried Tomato Pesto Pasta for lunch every day since I first made it and I’m not even close to getting bored of it.

It taste like magic and happiness. True love at first bite.

Oh, baby!

How To Make: Sun Dried Tomato Pesto Pasta

This recipe is super easy to make made with 10 ingredients total! At most this takes about 20 minutes to make – the time it takes to boil your (gluten free) pasta + a little extra time to mix it all together.

Our pesto star ingredients?

✔️Sun Dried Tomatoes packed in oil
✔️Nutritional Yeast – for the cheesy flavour
✔️Walnuts
✔️Basil
✔️Garlic
✔️Salt

Since the sun dried tomatoes are already packed in oil you can pour the whole jar in your food processor/blender along with the rest of your ingredients and blitz until you reach your preferred consistency. Taste and  season with a pinch of salt if needed and that’s it!

The pesto + pasta here alone is delicious/filling enough for a meal, but what really brings this dish to a new level is the addition of sautéed kale & walnuts. Minutes before you’re ready to assemble your pasta heat a tablespoon of oil in a pan. Once the oil is hot add some chopped kale and walnuts and sauté until crisp and tender. This should take a couple of minutes at most but adds a a lot when it comes to flavour, texture, and overall goodness.

This pesto pasta cooks up in a flash making it a great dish to serve on these late summer days while still being cozy enough for a fall comfort food. Since there’s no dairy in here you don’t have to worry about it spoiling too quickly out in the sun. It keeps well in the fridge for a few days so this could also be a great addition as a side for any meal prep work lunches throughout the week.

Enjoy!

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Recipe

Sun Dried Tomato Pesto Pasta with Sautéed Kale & Walnuts - Vegan + GF

Yield: 4-6 servings Prep Time: 10 minutes Cook Time: 10 minutes Total Time: 20 minutes

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10 Ingredient Sun Dried Tomato Pesto Pasta with crispy, sautéed kale and walnuts | Gluten Free + Vegan

Ingredients

Sun Dried Tomato Pesto

• 1 jar | 6.7 oz/170 gram jar of sun dried tomatoes packed in oil
• 3 tablespoons | 10 grams nutritional yeast (can use parmesan if you're okay with dairy)
• 2 tablespoons | 12 grams walnuts
• 1 cup basil, chopped and loosely packed
• 2 cloves garlic
• 1/2 teaspoon sea salt

Pasta

• 1 pound gluten free penne (or pasta of your choice)
• 1 1/2 tablespoons sea salt
• 1 tablespoons | 15 ml olive oil
• 2 cups kale, destemmed & chopped
• 1/4 cup chopped walnuts

Need help converting to weights? Check out my cups to grams Conversion Guide.

Instructions

Pesto

1. Add the sun dried tomatoes with oil to a blender or food processor along with the nutritional yeast, walnuts, garlic cloves, and salt. Blend everything together until you've reached your desired pesto consistency - blend more for smooth sauce/less for more chunky paste. Taste and season as you like.
2. You will end up with leftover pesto - save the rest and store it in the fridge. You can make more pasta with it, add it to salads, spread it on sandwiches/flatbreads etc. 

Pasta

1. Fill large pot of water 2/3 of the way full and add the salt. Bring the water to a boil and then carefully add in the pasta. Cook the pasta in boiling water until al dente - springy & chewy & not mushy. It should take about 10 minutes. Make sure to stir often. Gluten free pasta likes to clump so you really need to keep it moving to prevent it from sticking together. 
2. In a large skillet/pan over a medium heat warm your 1 tablespoon of oil on a medium-low heat. When the oil is hot add the kale and walnuts. Watch your kale and stir constantly for a minute or two until it begins to become tender. Once the kale begins to crisp remove it from the heat.
3. To assemble add your pasta to a large bowl along with half of the pesto and all of the kale and walnuts. Toss gently until combined. Taste, adding more pesto if you think it needs it, and serve!

Notes

This recipe keeps well for several days in the refrigerator, covered. Serve leftovers warm or chilled. 

The pesto will make about double what you actually need for this recipe. You can store it in the fridge and use within 5-7 days or freeze it and keep for 3-4 months. I like to freeze pesto using this method from The Kitchn. 

Nutrition Information

Yield: 6

Serving Size:

about 1 cup Calories: 354Total Fat: 7gSaturated Fat: 1gCarbohydrates: 69gFiber: 3gSugar: 2gProtein: 9g

This website provides approximate nutrition information for convenience and as a courtesy only. Nutrition data is gathered primarily from the USDA Food Composition Database, whenever available, or otherwise other online calculators.

© A Saucy Kitchen, Sarah Nevins

Course: Mains Cuisine: Gluten Free