Pesto Pasta Salad with Peas and Parmesan
Get excited about pasta salad again with this amazing pesto pasta salad with peas and Parmesan. So light, so simple, so delicious!
Just wanted to let you know I made this the other night and my husband was nearly kissing my feet. Seriously, I don’t know even know how many times he complimented me. This is definitely one of our new favorites! -Stacie
4 Reasons to Love This Pasta Salad
This pesto pasta salad is AMAZING!
- The bright, fresh flavor is phenomenal thanks to using easy-to-find, prepared basil pesto and a few other key ingredients (like lemon juice!).
- It makes a lot, so it is perfect for potlucks and any time when you need to feed a crowd. However, the recipe can also be scaled down, if needed.
- The salad can be prepped ahead of time. If doing so, reserve some of the dressing to toss with the pasta right before serving.
- It is adaptable to a lot of different add-ins, like bacon, cherry tomatoes, roasted corn kernels and more.
I have taken this pesto salad to more get-togethers and occasions than I can count, and it is always well-received. As in, everyone completely and utterly raves about it.
Ingredients Notes
- Pasta: Use fusilli, rotini, bowtie, cascatelli or other twist-style pasta shape.
- Olive Oil: This ingredient is tossed with the cooked pasta so it doesn’t stick as it cools.
- Basil Pesto: Refrigerated basil pesto has a brighter, fresher flavor, and is preferred in this recipe rather than shelf-stable jarred pesto. Homemade basil pesto works great, as well.
- Spinach: Use one 10-ounce package of frozen, chopped spinach. Make sure the spinach is thawed and squeezed dry of all excess liquid.
- Fresh Lemon Juice: This ingredient brightens up the dish – don’t leave it out!
- Parmesan Cheese: Use freshly grated Parmesan (from a block of cheese) for best texture and flavor.
- Mayonnaise: I’ve made this pasta salad with both light mayo and regular mayo, and either works great.
- Peas: Frozen peas work great; thaw before using.
- Pine Nuts: You can toast the pine nuts lightly before using in the salad, if desired.
Additional Notes
- For a pasta salad with more dressing-to-pasta ratio, reduce the pasta to one pound.
- You can lightly toast the pine nuts before using, if desired (highly recommend!).
- This salad is incredibly delicious with in-season, halved cherry or grape tomatoes tossed in with the peas.
➡️ To make this salad ahead of time, mix the dressing per the recipe and refrigerate for up to three days. Toss with the cooked pasta when ready to serve. You can also toss the pasta with the dressing and refrigerate for several hours. If doing so, reserve 1/4 to 1/3 cup of dressing to toss with the pasta before serving, and leave the pine nuts off until just before serving.
Bookmark this pesto pasta salad the next time you need the perfect pasta salad! It makes a fabulous dinner (with or without grilled chicken) and a wonderful addition to any holiday dinner lineup or summer BBQ or potluck.
Pesto Pasta Salad with Peas and Parmesan
Ingredients
- 1 ½ pounds fusilli, rotini, bowtie, cascatelli or other twist-style pasta shape (see note)
- 2 to 3 tablespoons olive oil
- 1 ½ cups basil pesto (see note)
- 1 (10-ounce) package frozen chopped spinach, defrosted and squeezed dry
- 3 tablespoons freshly squeezed lemon juice
- ½ teaspoon coarse, kosher salt
- ½ cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese
- 1 ¼ cups mayonnaise, light or regular
- ¼ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
- 1 ½ cups frozen peas, thawed
- ⅓ cup pine nuts, lightly toasted, if desired
Instructions
- Cook the pasta in lightly salted boiling water until al dente, according to package directions. Drain and toss in a bowl with the olive oil.
- Cool the pasta to room temperature, tossing every once in a while to prevent the noodles from sticking to each other as they cool.
- In a food processor or blender, puree the pesto, spinach, lemon juice, salt and pepper.
- Add the mayonnaise and blend until well combined.
- Add the pesto mixture to the cooled pasta. Toss until the pasta is evenly coated.
- Add the Parmesan, peas, and pine nuts. Toss lightly. Season, to taste, with additional salt and pepper, if needed. Serve at room temperature.
Notes
- Original recipe called for 3/4 teaspoon kosher salt and 3/4 teaspoon pepper. These ingredients were also added at the end, but it works better to add them to the blended dressing.
- Original recipe called for 1/4 cup olive oil. Using less oil still helps the pasta not stick, but doesn’t leave it as greasy as using the full amount.
- Original recipe called for two types of pasta: 3/4 pound each of fusili pasta and bowtie pasta.
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Recipe Source: my friend Liz K. and Ina Garten
Recipe originally posted March 2010; updated April 2026 with new photos, recipe notes, and recipe changes.
This is the best tri-color pasta salad recipe!!
I used Cardini’s Original Caesar dressing and I added some thin circles of sliced salami cut in half to add more protein!! Delicious!
I made this as directed! How come mine was all sludge green! Didn’t look like yours at all!
Has anyone frozen the leftovers?
Mel! I love all your recipes and your blog. I always ask silly questions. But my question is I’m making this salad right now thinking it was meant to serve cold. I need to learn to read the whole recipe before starting. Do you think I am fine chilling it tonight and serving it tomorrow on our camping trip?
Your questions aren’t silly, Dani! This salad is great chilled but you might want to reserve a bit of pesto to stir in right before serving as it tends to dry out slightly when refrigerated overnight.
What a great recipie. To speed things up i used Kraft olive oil pesto Parmesan salad dressing and added roasted almond slices as I did not have any pine nuts. A very tasty pasta salad.
My friend made this but didn’t have enough fresh spinach, so she substituted half the spinach with arugula and it was fabulous! Thanks for a great recipe…
Can I make the pesto mix the day before?
Kim – I’ve never done it that way, but I think it should work fine as long as it is well covered and refrigerated.
This was a huge hit at our Memorial Day BBQ last night. Thanks for sharing!
Much thanks for this recipe. As your recipes always are, this was a huge crowd pleaser. I cooked it for a huge family dinner and have since received multiple requests for the recipe.
I love me some pesto – and I loved the addition of spinach. Yum.
Thanks!
Thanks, Shauntel! I’m glad this worked out for your big family dinner!
I made this tonight! I am usually not too fond of pasta salad, but this was a hit with my husband & I. I had a little bit of pesto sauce left over, do you think it would last if I freezed it?
Natalie – hmmm, I don’t know if the pesto sauce would freeze very well because of the creaminess. It wouldn’t hurt to try but it may defrost with a bit of a grainy-texture.
Stacie – your comment made me chuckle! I’m so glad your husband raved about this (I’d be making it every night if I were you)…and also, thanks for adding your changes!
hayley – great idea!
Just wanted to let you know I made this the other night and my husband was nearly kissing my feet. Seriously, I don’t know even know how many times he complimented me. This is definitely one of our new favorites!
I also wanted to add that I had frozen spinach on hand, but opted to use up some fresh spinach. I only used what I had (maybe 6-8 ounces, I made the salad slightly smaller than yours) and I simply threw it in the food processor with everything else. Turned out just great!
You should invest in an aerogarden. We got one last July and have had fresh basil, cilantro, sage, oregano, and parsley inside the house since. And they are sooo easy to take care of!
Jeanna – to be honest, I have no idea, but my guess would be to use two 9-ounce bags of fresh spinach and cook it down (or steam it) until it is wilted. Drain off the liquid and use in the recipe. Let me know if you try it!
A comment above refers to seeing Ina make this on her show using fresh spinach, yet the recipe lists frozen. I would prefer using fresh but how much, and how would you prep it? thanks!
Becky – I’m sure you could sub another kind of creamy ingredient for mayo. The taste and texture might change a bit but I think it is worth trying if you don’t have may on hand. I think plain yogurt might work as well. I’m glad this salad was a hit!
I made this for Easter yesterday and it was a HUGE hit! I wanted to see if you thought low fat/fat-free sour cream could be subbed for the mayo? I never have mayo on hand, but always have sour cream.
This was a great addition to our Easter table. Thank you so much for sharing. I love your site.
TaLaisa, as always, you are a wealth of information! Thank you so much for chiming in on the pesto discussion, and especially the different nuts you have used. I can’t wait to get my hands on your recipes!
Thanks for sharin’ the love, glad to see I have a 4th reader out there 🙂 I’m excited to try your lasagna, chantilly potatoes and chicken cordon blue casserole this week. I have yet to be disappointed by any of your recipes!
I love adding peas to pasta. I made something similar today for lunch. This looks delicious.
I adore Pesto with a burning love of a thousand suns. Pesto is my favorite.
I plant 3 or 4 basil plants every summer so that I can make and freeze pesto for later on. Homemade pesto is so much better than store bought it’s worth the few minutes it takes to make up a batch. I have used a bit of flat leaf parsley to extend the basil when I’ve craved it and the frozen stash is out and I can’t bring myself to spend $8 for herbs that’ll work for 1.5 meals.
I’ve successfully made and LOVED pesto with the following nuts (not all at once) pistachios, toasted pecans and walnuts. I have a little boy who is allergic to peanuts and most tree nuts. Of the above mentioned nuts He can now only have pistachios and I’ve found that the Everybody’s Nuts Pistachios (they sell the salt and pepper variety at Costco) are not processed with any other nuts. As a mom of a nut allergy boy I can’t tell you how rare that is. Pistachios are my very favorite unconventional nut for pesto, even given the option of the other varieties. Pecans are next in line.
Melanie, I’ll email you my recipe so you can try it out. You know, when the basil plant is big enough this summer.
Isn’t this the kind of thing you wish you had fresh in your fridge when you’re wondering, “what in the world am I going to eat for lunch?”
I think I saw Ina make that once…and loved the idea of using fresh spinach with store bought pesto. (Although pesto is really very easy to make, I don’t always take the time.)
It’s really a lovely dish and your photo is terrific!
What a perfect dish for Easter… I love all the ingredients used.
the alliteration-lover in me is giddy at this recipe. also excited is the voracious eater that only comes out at meal time. 🙂
This looks wonderful. It’s the perfect pasta dish. We’ll give it a try real soon. Have a great day. Blessings…Mary
I love this combo. Great pasta dish!
For those who asked about pesto – I never make my own pesto in the winter because basil is too darn expensive but hopefully I’ll have a prolific basil plant (or three) this summer and if so, I’ll test out some pesto recipes and post them (I don’t have a great favorite right now, although Ina Garten has a good one, I’ve heard, if you search the Food Network site).
Lillian – I don’t have a pesto recipe without pine nuts but I bet you could google the question and find some good results!
JJ – your comment/question made me laugh – the swimming in the pool part. Anyway, the reason is because if the cooking times are different on the pasta (which they are by a couple of minutes for these two types), then one pasta would be under or overcooked. However, you could figure out the times and add the pasta second that has a lower cooking time. Then you would only need one pot.
This may seem like a dumb question but why the need to cook the pastas separatly? Is there a reason they can’t swim in the same pool together?
This looks really really good. Do you make your own pesto? Someday (maybe when you have basil coming out your ears), would you post your recipe of it? Please please please please??
Oh, I am so glad you liked this one. Everytime I make it I am reminded how much I love it.
Do you have a good pesto recipe that doesn’t involve pine nuts? I’m deathly allergic!
That looks so delicious!! i love all the fresh flavors.
The Barefoot Contessa is one of my favorite Food Network chefs, and I have never been dissapointed by her recipes (I have all of her cookbooks)!
I have made this pasta, and it is amazing! Beautiful photos, Mel!