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This light, springy meal is vegetarian, packed with flavor and easy to make. Pesto Pasta with Green Beans Sun-dried Tomatoes is sure to be a hit with your family! Pasta mixes with fresh green beans, sun-dried tomatoes, pine nuts and Parmesan cheese.
This Pesto Pasta with Green Beans and Sun-Dried Tomatoes comes together in 25 minutes and is a genuinely easy weeknight dinner, not just an easy-sounding one. Pasta gets tossed with basil pesto, blanched green beans, chopped sun-dried tomatoes, parmesan, and toasted pine nuts for a dish that’s light, a little tangy, and packed with texture in every bite. Use jarred pesto for a five-ingredient shortcut, or homemade if you have it on hand, either way this comes together on a busy weeknight without turning into a whole production. It’s vegetarian, reheats well for lunch the next day, and is easy to bulk up with white beans or chickpeas if you want more protein at the table. I love rotating between this recipe, this Pesto Tortellini and Spring Vegetable Minestrone.
Why This Recipe Works
The green beans get blanched separately, just until crisp-tender, so they hold their color and a little bite instead of going soft and stringy in the pasta pot. Tossing everything with the pesto while the pasta is still hot helps the sauce cling to each piece instead of pooling at the bottom of the bowl, and the sun-dried tomatoes add a concentrated, tangy pop that a lot of simple pesto pastas are missing. Toasting the pine nuts separately instead of adding them raw is a small step that makes a real difference.
Recipe Ingredients
You will love this easy recipe and the simple ingredients. It is one of my favorite recipes!
- Pasta: Medium shells hold the pesto well, but any small or medium shape works. Orecchiette and elbow are both good stand-ins.
- Green Beans: Fresh green beans give the best color and bite. Blanch them separately from the pasta so they stay bright green instead of turning gray.
- Pesto: Your favorite jarred basil pesto works great for a shortcut, or use homemade if you have it. About 1/4 cup is a good starting point, add more if you like it saucier.
- Sun-Dried Tomatoes: Oil-packed sun-dried tomatoes add a concentrated, slightly sweet-tart flavor. Drain them well before adding so they don’t bring extra oil into the dish.
- Parmesan Cheese: Freshly grated parmesan melts into the warm pasta far better than pre-shredded. Swap in another hard cheese if that’s what you have on hand.
- Pine Nuts: Toasting them in a dry skillet for a few minutes brings out their flavor. Walnuts are a good substitute if pine nuts aren’t in your pantry.
How do you Make Pesto Pasta with Green Beans
Step 1: Cook Pasta: In a large pot boil water for the pasta. Cook the pasta according to the package. Set aside.
Step 2: Cook Green Beans: Bring another large pot of water to a boil with a steamer insert. Once the water boils steam the green beans until they are almost tender and a bright green color {I usually test one to see if it is the texture I like}.
Step 3: Toast Pine Nuts: Heat a dry large skillet over medium-low heat and toast pine nuts, stirring frequently, until pine nuts are golden in spots, about 3 minutes. Remove and set aside.
Step 4: Combine Pasta Ingredients: In a large mixing bowl combine the pasta, green beans, pesto, sun-dried tomatoes and parmesan cheese.
Add salt and pepper to taste. Sprinkle the toasted pine nuts over the pasta and serve warm. Garnish with freshly chopped basil {optional}.
Common Mistakes to Avoid
- Overcooking the green beans. Pull them the moment they turn bright green and are still crisp-tender, carryover heat keeps softening them even after draining.
- Tossing pesto with cold pasta. Combine everything while the pasta is still hot so the sauce coats each piece instead of clumping.
- Skipping the pine nut toasting step. Raw pine nuts taste flat; three minutes in a dry skillet makes a noticeable difference.
- Using pesto straight from the fridge. Let jarred pesto sit out for a few minutes before tossing, cold pesto seizes and coats unevenly.
- Adding all the cheese and pine nuts at once. Reserve a little of each to sprinkle on top after plating for better flavor in every bite.
Storage Tips
- Refrigerator: Store leftovers in an airtight container for up to 3 days. Pesto pasta dries out in the fridge, so don’t skip the reheating tip below.
- To reheat: Add a splash of water, broth, or olive oil before reheating, either in a skillet over medium-low heat, stirring gently until warmed through, or in the microwave in 30-second intervals. The liquid brings the pesto back to life instead of leaving you with dry, clumpy pasta. If you saved back some parmesan or pine nuts, add them fresh after reheating rather than microwaving them with the pasta.
- Freezer: This one’s best enjoyed fresh. The green beans lose their texture and the pesto can separate once frozen and thawed, so freezing isn’t recommended.
- Meal Prep Tip: If you’re prepping ahead, keep the pasta, blanched green beans, and pesto separate until you’re ready to eat, then toss everything together with a splash of the reserved pasta water. This keeps the color and texture much closer to day one than combining everything in advance.
Recipe FAQ
Yes. Thaw them first and blanch for about half the time you would with fresh, since they’re already partially cooked. Pat them dry before adding so they don’t water down the pesto.
You can cook the pasta, blanch the beans, and toast the pine nuts up to a day ahead and store them separately in the fridge. Toss everything with the pesto just before serving so the sauce stays fresh instead of getting absorbed and dry.
This usually happens when the pesto is added to pasta that’s already cooled, or when there isn’t quite enough to coat everything. Toss the pasta with pesto while it’s still hot, and reserve a splash of the pasta cooking water to thin the sauce if it looks tight.
More Pasta Recipes
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Pesto Pasta with Green Beans
Ingredients
- 8 ounces pasta , medium shell {or small/medium pasta of your choice}
- 1 pound green beans, trimmed
- 1/4 cup basil pesto, {more or less to taste}
- 1/3 cup sun dried tomatoes in olive oil, julienned and drained
- 1/4 cup parmesan cheese , freshly grated or cheese of your choice more or less depending on your tastes
- 1/4 cup pine nuts, toasted
- Salt and pepper to taste
- basil, Fresh chopped
Instructions
- In a large pot boil water for the pasta. Cook the pasta according to the package. Set aside.
- Bring another large pot of water to a boil with a steamer insert. Once the water boils steam the green beans until they are almost tender and a bright green color {I usually test one to see if it is the texture I like}.
- Heat a dry large skillet over medium-low heat and toast pine nuts, stirring frequently, until pine nuts are golden in spots, about 3 minutes. Remove and set aside.
- In a large mixing bowl combine the pasta, green beans, pesto, sun-dried tomatoes and parmesan cheese.
- Add salt and pepper to taste. Sprinkle the toasted pine nuts over the pasta and serve warm. Garnish with freshly chopped basil {optional}.
Notes
- Reserve about 1/4 cup of pasta water before draining, it’s handy for loosening the sauce when tossing or reheating.
- Toss the pesto with the pasta while it’s still hot so the sauce coats everything evenly instead of clumping.
- Swap in white beans or chickpeas for extra protein, or asparagus or zucchini in place of the green beans.
- Walnuts work well if you’re out of pine nuts, or leave them off entirely.
- Best enjoyed the day it’s made or within 3 days from the fridge. This one doesn’t freeze well, the pesto separates once thawed.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Great spring past
This is gorgeous! Love all the veggies in here and the delicious pesto 🙂 Pinning!
Thank you Medha! I love the veggie combo with the pesto too! It all goes great together.
This is one of our absolute favorites! My youngest doesn’t like red sauce and I struggle with pasta dishes he will eat. He gobbled this one up which was great, but I loved it too and didn’t want to share!
I loved the addition of the sun dried tomatoes…the perfect flavor with the pesto. Can’t wait to have this meal again!
Yeah! I am so glad the kiddos like it! My kids ate this right up too. The sun-dried tomatoes were my favorite paired with the pesto!