With only three ingredients and 10 minutes cook time, this creamy pesto pasta will soon become a weeknight staple in your house. Vibrant, garlicky pesto sauce mixed in with Greek yogurt makes this easy dinner recipe both simple and comforting.
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Need dinner on the table as fast as possible?
This pesto pasta makes that possible.
With it, you'll have all the flavors of classic basil pesto but in an nice, creamy, sauce swirled onto your favorite noodles.
It'll be on the table in just ten minutes, making it a new family favorite for busy nights.
Why you will love this recipe
- So quick - cook the pasta, and then you're basically done!
- 3 ingredients are all you need
- Versatile: You can have it as is, or add more flavors
- Lighter than the typical creamy pesto pasta as it uses yogurt in place of cream (which also adds a bit of acidity to the dish)
- Flavor packed and deliciously creamy
What you need to make it
Ingredient notes & substitutions
- Pesto: You can use traditional green pesto, store-bought pesto, or my red pesto with walnuts. They're all delicious in this creamy pesto pasta.
- Greek Yogurt can be replaced with creme fraiche or another cooking yogurt
- Make it dairy-free by using a dairy-free version of yogurt or creme fraiche
- Make it vegan by using dairy-free yogurt and choosing a vegan pesto sauce with nutritional yeast in place of parmesan
How to make it
- Cook the pasta, and reserve some water when draining it. Once cooked, add in the pesto pasta sauce and toss.
- Stir in the reserved pasta water.
- Add in the Greek yogurt and mix well.
- Taste test and season with more pesto, salt, and pepper if needed.
Tips & tricks
- For the best flavor use your favorite pesto sauce for pasta
- Use homemade pesto like my red pesto sauce to make it even better!
- Add your favorite toppings to make this creamy pesto pasta a new dish every time you make it
Variations
One of the reasons this creamy pesto pasta recipe is so good is that you can create a slightly different flavor each time you make it.
Try one of the following versions for a new and unique twist on the recipe:
- Increase the protein with pre-cooked shrimp in the air fryer, grilled chicken, or crispy bacon bits
- Add extra color and nutrients with cherry tomatoes, spinach, steamed broccoli, mushrooms, or arugula
- Bump up the richness by mixing in a ball of burrata, pecorino, or extra shredded cheese
- Add some flavor with red chili flakes or ribbons of fresh basil leaves
- Add texture with roasted nuts like pine nuts or walnuts - bonus points for matching the nuts in your pesto!
- Do it all and load it up with homemade pesto, roasted veggies, and crunchy nuts like for my Red Pesto Pasta
- Serve with a green salad for a nice pairing that adds veggies and flavor
Storing, freezing & reheating
Store in the refrigerator in an airtight container for up to 3-4 days.
Freeze it in an airtight container or plastic bag (to save room) for up to three months.
Reheat it in the microwave or on the stove on low after thawing it in the fridge if frozen. You may need to add a little bit of yogurt to the dish to get the texture back.
Recipe FAQ
Typically, you would use long-noodle pasta like spaghetti, tagliatelle, or fettuccini. However, pesto sauce works just as well on short-length noodles like macaroni or rigatoni. Use what you have on hand and what you enjoy the most.
Pesto cream sauce is a combination of pesto sauce and a creamy agent. Often, this is heavy cream, but you can also use Greek yogurt or another cooking yogurt instead, as we did here. This makes it a bit lighter and healthier and balances the flavor nicely.
More 15-minute dinner recipes
Looking for more dinners you can make in under 15 minutes?
- Garlic Butter Shrimp Pasta
- Spicy Sausage Pasta
- Shrimp Carbonara
- Tortellini Carbonara
- Lemon Ricotta Pasta
Did you love this recipe? Rate it five stars!
...and let me know what you loved about it in the comments.
Recipe
Creamy Pesto Pasta
Print RateIngredients
- 2 servings pasta cooked al dente
- 3 tablespoon pesto green or red
- ¼ cup pasta cooking water
- ¼ cup Greek yogurt or crème fraîche
Instructions
- Cook the pasta according to package instructions, in a large pot of salted water.2 servings pasta
- When the pasta is done, drain the water, but reserve some of it to use in the sauce. Place the pasta back in the pot.
- Add the pesto to the cooked pasta together with pasta cooking water, and mix.3 tablespoon pesto, ¼ cup pasta cooking water
- Add in yogurt, and mix again, until well combined. Taste test and add more pesto if desired, or a touch of salt and pepper.¼ cup Greek yogurt
- Serve as it is, or topped with cherry tomatoes, shredded cheese, a ball of burrata, or crispy bacon.
Equipment (may contain affiliate links)
- Measuring cups (metric or US)*
Video
Notes
- Make it dairy-free by using a dairy-free version of yogurt or creme fraiche
- Make it vegan by using dairy-free yogurt and choosing a vegan pesto sauce with nutritional yeast in place of parmesan
- For the best flavor use your favorite pesto sauce for pasta
- Use homemade pesto like my red pesto sauce to make it even better!
- Add your favorite toppings to make this creamy pesto pasta a new dish every time you make it
- Store in the fridge for up to 3-4 days
- Freeze it in an airtight container or plastic bag (to save room) for up to three months
- Reheat it in the microwave or on the stove on low after thawing it in the fridge if frozen. You may need to add a little bit of yogurt to the dis0 to get the texture back.
Variations to try:
- Increase the protein with pre-cooked shrimp in the air fryer, grilled chicken, or crispy bacon bits
- Add extra color and nutrients with cherry tomatoes, spinach, steamed broccoli, mushrooms, or arugula
- Bump up the richness by mixing in a ball of burrata, pecorino, or extra shredded cheese
- Add some flavor with red chili flakes or ribbons of fresh basil
- Add texture with roasted nuts like pine nuts or walnuts - bonus points for matching the nuts in your pesto!
- Do it all and load it up with homemade pesto, roasted veggies, and crunchy nuts like for my Red Pesto Pasta
Nutrition
Nutritional information is approximate and automatically calculated, and should only be viewed as an indication.
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