This vegetarian pasta keeps things easy but layered: creamy sauce, peas, spinach, fresh pesto, and roasted baby tomatoes with their sweet juices spooned over the top.
Why this works
Roasting the tomatoes concentrates their sweetness and gives the creamy pesto pasta a bright finish. Peas and spinach make the dish feel generous without making it heavy.
Ingredients
- Rigatoni or penne pasta
- Baby plum tomatoes
- Garlic
- Vegetable stock paste
- Creme fraiche
- Peas
- Baby spinach
- Green pesto
- Grated hard Italian-style cheese
- Olive oil, sugar, salt, and black pepper
Method
- Halve the tomatoes, season with olive oil, salt, pepper, and a little sugar, then roast in a foil parcel until softened.
- Cook the pasta in salted boiling water until tender.
- Fry garlic briefly, then add vegetable stock paste and water. Simmer for a minute or two.
- Stir in creme fraiche and season to taste.
- Add the drained pasta, peas, and spinach, heating until the spinach wilts.
- Stir through the cheese, then loosen with a splash of water if needed.
- Spoon into bowls, drizzle with pesto, and top with the roasted tomatoes and their juices.
Cottolio tip
Add the pesto at the end rather than boiling it in the sauce. The colour stays greener and the flavour tastes fresher.
