Pesto Cavatappi is a tasty copycat recipe of the famous Noodles & Company dish. This recipe uses fresh homemade basil pesto sauce. It smells and tastes amazing and is guaranteed to please the whole family. With this recipe, you can make a mouthwatering pasta any night of the week.

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Pesto pasta - 1 Pesto pasta - 2

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Pesto Cavatappi - 3

Equipment

  • De Cecco Pasta, Cavatappi No.87, 16 oz
  • Ninja Blender/Food Processor with Intelli-Sense Touchscreen, 1200-Watt Smart Sensor Base, Spiralizer, 72oz Pitcher, 64oz Bowl, and 24oz Cup (CT682SP)
  • Mealthy MultiPot 9-in-1 Programmable Slow and Pressure Cooker
  • Instant Pot Ultra 6 Qt 10-in-1
  • Zester & Cheese Grater - Lemon Zester - Parmesan Cheese, Citrus Fruits, Lemon&Lime, Cinnamon, Nutmeg, Ginger, Garlic, Coconut, Chocolate, Vegetables - Razor Sharp Stainless Steel Blade, Rust Free

Ingredients

For Pesto

  • Fresh basil leaves - 1- ½ cups
  • Freshly grated Romano or Parmesan-Reggiano cheese about 2 ounces - ½ cup
  • Extra virgin olive oil - ¼ cup
  • Pine nuts - ⅓ cup
  • Garlic cloves minced - 3
  • Salt - ¼ tsp
  • Freshly ground black pepper - ¼ tsp

For Pasta

  • Pesto - ½ cup
  • Water - 2 cups
  • Cavatappi Pasta - 8 oz
  • Fresh white mushrooms sliced thickly 1 -½ cup
  • Olive oil - 1 Tbsp
  • Cherry tomatoes sliced in half - 1 cup
  • Garlic cloves roughly chopped -2 cloves
  • some shredded Parmesan cheese for garnish (optional)
  • Heavy Whipping Cream or milk - ¼ cup optional

Instructions

Prepare the Pesto Sauce

  • Rinse Basil leaves in cold water
  • In a food processor or high-power blender, combine basil leaves, Parmesan cheese, pine nuts ,salt, garlic, and olive oil.
  • Your Pesto sauce is ready.
  • For the Pasta
  • Set Instant pot to Sauté Mode
  • Once you see the HOT message, add oil and cherry tomatoes
  • Sauté the tomatoes for around 30 seconds.
  • Remove the tomatoes out and set them aside.
  • Add the chopped garlic and the mushrooms to the inner pot
  • Sauté them for around 1 minute.
  • Add the pesto sauce and mix the ingredients well and then add the Cavatappi pasta to the inner pot
  • Add water and salt to taste.
  • Do not stir.
  • Set the Pressure cooker to Manual/Pressure Cook with High Pressure, for 5 minutes.
  • Once the timer is up, allow around 5 minutes for NPR (natural pressure release).
  • Use the quick release method to let off the remaining pressure.
  • Add in heavy cream and stir everything well.
  • You can saute the pasta for a few minutes if you like the sauce a bit thicker.
  • Top it with the cherry tomatoes that were set aside earlier.
  • You can top it with Parmesan cheese
  • Serve hot and enjoy !

Video

Notes

  • Do not pressure cook the tomatoes because they will become too mushy
  • Do not pressure cook the cream or milk because it will separate
  • Use homemade pesto sauce in this recipe, it enhances the flavors.However, if you are really in a pinch you could always use store bought Pesto sauce
  • We use cavatappi noodles which are like a macaroni noodle that is in the shape of a spiral, you can use them or other similarly shaped noodles if you prefer
  • You can use gluten-free pasta to make this pesto pasta
  • Do not stir the noodle before pressure cooking the pasta

Nutrition