This 20 minute Creamy Vegan Italian Pasta Salad is easy, flavorful, and perfect for get togethers. Summer meal prep level up!
If you’ve never thought to put vegan pesto on a pasta salad then here’s your tip that you must make this delicious vegan pesto pasta salad.
Pesto is one of the easiest sauces to whip up and it’s ready at that same time as your pasta which means quick, easy, and flavorful with little effort.
Pasta salads are perfect for summer get togethers and meal prep! They are always better the next day, which means you can prep ahead and have a meal for days!
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Why You’ll Love This Dish
- Easy – This recipe only takes 20 minutes to make!
- Great for Meal Prep – this is one of those recipes that only gets better with time which is perfect for meal prep as you can make it 3-5 days in advance and use as needed
- Gluten Free and Allergen Friendly – this recipe is easily Top 9 Allergen Free which means it’s a great option to serve to everyone
🥘Recipe Ingredients
Gather your ingredients!
- Noodles – In the photos, we are using shells as it’s a great base for pasta salad and holds sauce well; however, feel free to use your favorite shape. Note: that smaller noodles make more than larger ones.
- Garlic – We love garlic as much as the next person, however, since we aren’t cooking garlic we left it to one bulb. Raw garlic can be spicy, so keep that in mind if you want to add more.
- Vegan Parmesan – Our preference is Violife parmesan block that we grate ourselves or Follow Your Heart parmesan.
- Pine Nuts – Pine nuts are standard for pestos and can be found in store either with other nuts or by the spaghetti sauces. We toast them to bring out more flavor.
See my recipe card below for a complete list of the ingredients with measurements.
Substitutions and Variations:
- Noodles – If you’d prefer, feel free to use gluten free noodles or even something like zucchini or sweet potato noodles if you’d like.
- Vegan Parmesan – Nutritional yeast would be a less processed alternative for vegan parmesan
- Pine Nuts – you can sub pine nuts with toasted walnuts, or if you are nut free, sunflower seeds.
- Stretch this meal – Feel free to add more vegetables like carrots, cucumbers, red onions and more to this, or something like chickpeas, tofu or mushrooms would be a good addition if you like them to stretch this.
Step by Step Instructions for vegan pesto pasta salad:
Step 1. Cook your pasta according the package directions. When done drain and rinse until cold water, add to a large bowl and toss with the vinegar and oil.
While pasta is cooking,
Step 2.
Step 3. Add dressing and remaining pasta ingredients into bowl with pasta.
Step 4. Stir well to combine. Add more salt and pepper as desired. Refrigerate overnight or at least 4-6 hours before serving for best results.
Recipe FAQs:
Yes. To start, use a gluten free pasta and a safe vegan parmesan for you (or sub with nutritional yeast). Lastly, sub the pine nuts with sunflower seeds and this recipe will be top 9 allergen friendly.
Yes. Once made, let cool completely and you can store in an air tight container in the fridge for 4-5 days.
Yes, just make sure to use a large enough pot and bowl to hold all your ingredients.
No, we don’t recommend freezing this dish.
Other Vegan Pasta Salad Recipes to Consider:
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Vegan Pesto Pasta Salad
Ingredients
For the Pasta Salad
- 2 qt water
- 2.5 tablespoon salt, for water only
- ½ lb pasta (I used shells)
- 2 tablespoon white vinegar
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 ¼ cup pesto (recipe below) + more for garnish
- 1 cup cherry tomatoes, halved (use different colors for more variation)
- 2 tablespoon vegan parmesan cheese, more to taste
- 1 clove garlic, minced
For the Pesto
- ½ cup olive oil
- ¾ cup toasted pine nuts (or sub with walnuts)
- 1 cup fresh basil
- ¼ teaspoon dried basil
- 1 cup spinach
- ½ cup red onion
- ½ teaspoon garlic powder
- 2 tablespoon vegan parmesan cheese
- ¾-1 tsp salt
- ½ lemon, zested
- 2 tablespoon lime juice
Instructions
- Add water and salt to a large pot and bring to a boil. Add uncooked pasta and cook according the package directions. When done drain and rinse until cold water, add to a large bowl and toss with the vinegar and oil.
- While pasta is cooking, add pesto ingredients to a blender or cup of an immersion blender and blend well.
- Add pesto and remaining pasta ingredients into bowl with pasta and stir well to combine. Add salt and pepper as desired. Refrigerate overnight or at least 4-6 hours before serving for best results.
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