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Home » Recipes » Pasta » Whole Wheat Summer Pesto Pasta {One-Pot Meal}

Whole Wheat Summer Pesto Pasta {One-Pot Meal}

4/28/22

Jump to Recipe Pin Recipe

This Whole Wheat Summer Pesto Pasta is the perfect one-pot meal that’s great for meal prep and batch cooking during a busy workweek!

Whole Wheat Summer Pesto Meal Prep Pasta

Ingredients and substitutions

  • Chicken breasts – boneless skinless chicken thighs would also be good or you can leave out the chicken for a vegetarian option.
  • Whole wheat rotini – basically any type of pasta, either small or large, will work for this recipe.
  • Jarred pesto – make your own pesto by blending together 2 cups of fresh basil leaves, ¼ cup of olive oil, ½ cup of parmesan, 2 cloves of garlic and a pinch of salt and pepper.
  • Zucchini – double up on the yellow squash or use another veggie like broccoli or mushrooms.
  • Yellow squash – you can also just double up on the zucchini instead.
  • Plum tomatoes – use another variety of tomatoes or leave these out altogether.
  • Garlic – fresh minced garlic is best but the jarred variety will work in a pinch.
  • Red onion – swap out for white or yellow onion instead.
  • Spinach – try another type of chopped greens like kale.
Whole Wheat Summer Pesto Meal Prep Pasta

How to make pesto pasta

  1. Cook the noodles.
  2. Brown the chicken.
  3. Sauté the veggies until softened.
  4. Combine everything together.
  5. Stir in the spinach.
  6. Serve and enjoy!
Whole Wheat Summer Pesto Meal Prep Pasta

What to serve on the side

This pasta is pretty filling on its own, but if you’re looking for side dish ideas, here are some of my favourites:

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  • Garlic bread
  • Side salad
  • Caprese salad
  • Olives, cheese and crackers
  • Roasted or steamed vegetables
Whole Wheat Summer Pesto Meal Prep Pasta

Frequently Asked Questions

What pasta goes with pesto?

You can use pretty much any kind of pasta with pesto. I like to use whole wheat pasta for a bit of a healthier option but you can use regular or even gluten-free noodles.

How much pasta water do I need to add?

I suggest reserving about half a cup of pasta water to help thicken up the pesto sauce.

Is pesto the healthiest pasta sauce?

Pesto is certainly one of the healthier sauces, especially when it comes to nutrients, since it’s made with basil. It all depends on what kind of pasta sauce you use – try to pick one that has the least amount of ingredients and preservatives.

Whole Wheat Summer Pesto Meal Prep Pasta

Storing and reheating

For meal prep purposes, I recommend storing this pasta in individual servings in glass containers for up to 5 days. When you’re ready to reheat, sprinkle some water over top so the pasta doesn't dry out then microwave for 2 minutes. You can also reheat in a pot on the stove.

Freezing this recipe

You can also freeze this pasta up to 3 months in airtight glass containers. Reheat from frozen for 6-7 minutes in the microwave, stirring once or twice halfway through. Make sure to sprinkle some water over top so the noodles don’t dry out!

Whole Wheat Summer Pesto Meal Prep Pasta

More easy pasta recipes

  • Pasta Primavera
  • Instant Pot Bruschetta Chicken Pasta
  • Cajun Chicken Pasta

Meal prep tools for this recipe

  • Grab some glass meal prep bowls if you plan on turning this pasta into leftovers.
  • Freeze this recipe in glass microwave-safe bowls up to 3 months.
Whole Wheat Summer Pesto Meal Prep Pasta

Whole Wheat Summer Pesto Pasta {One-Pot Meal}

This Whole Wheat Summer Pesto Pasta is the perfect one-pot meal that’s great for meal prep and batch cooking during a busy workweek!
5 from 4 votes
Print Pin Rate
Course: Pasta
Cuisine: Italian
Prep Time: 15 minutes
Cook Time: 30 minutes
Total Time: 45 minutes
Servings: 6 servings
Calories: 474kcal
Author: Taylor Stinson

Ingredients

  • 1 lb chicken breasts, diced
  • 1 lb whole wheat rotini
  • 1/2 cup jarred pesto
  • 1 zucchini
  • 1 yellow squash or use 2 zucchini instead
  • 4 plum tomatoes, diced
  • 2 cloves garlic minced
  • 1 red onion, diced
  • 2 cups spinach, chopped

Instructions

  • Cook pasta in boiling water until al dente, about 10 minutes. Reserve 1/2 cup of pasta water and drain pasta, then set aside in a strainer. Return pasta pot to stove over med-high heat.
  • Add remaining tbsp of olive oil to pot, then add chicken and cook for 5 minutes until browned. Add tomatoes, zucchini, yellow squash, red onion and garlic. Saute for 2 minutes until veggies have softened.
  • Add pesto, pasta waster and pasta back to pot, stirring well to coat and cooking for another 2 minutes or so. Stir in chopped spinach and remove from heat. Serve and enjoy!

Notes

Use any kind of pasta noodles you want like fusilli, penne or even macaroni.
Make sure to reserve ½ cup of pasta water to thicken up the sauce.
If you don’t have any jarred pesto sauce you can make your own using basil leaves, olive oil, parmesan, garlic, salt and pepper.
Store any leftovers in the fridge for up to 5 days. Sprinkle some water over top then microwave for 2 minutes.
Freeze individual serving sizes for up to 3 months then reheat from frozen in the microwave  for 6-7 minutes.

Nutrition

Calories: 474kcal | Carbohydrates: 64g | Protein: 29g | Fat: 11g | Saturated Fat: 2g | Cholesterol: 50mg | Sodium: 299mg | Potassium: 800mg | Fiber: 4g | Sugar: 6g | Vitamin A: 1852IU | Vitamin C: 22mg | Calcium: 81mg | Iron: 2mg
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This Whole Wheat Summer Pesto Pasta is the perfect one-pot meal that’s great for meal prep and batch cooking during a busy workweek!  #mealprep #pestopasta This Whole Wheat Summer Pesto Pasta is the perfect one-pot meal that’s great for meal prep and batch cooking during a busy workweek! #mealprep #pestopasta

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About Taylor Stinson

Hey there, my name's Taylor! I’m the founder of The Girl on Bloor, a food blog where I share healthy meal prep recipes for busy people. I'm a busy city girl living in downtown Toronto on (you guessed it!) Bloor Street. I've got 10 years experience meal prepping, along with a Master's degree in journalism, and you can find my work across the internet featured on publications such as Buzzfeed, HuffPost, Women's Health, Reader's Digest and more. I also run the awesome 5-Day Meal Prep Challenge, which is a free email course and Facebook group where I share my meal planning strategies and easy meal prep tips and recipes. Be sure to check out my free beginner’s guide to meal prep and follow me on Facebook, YouTube and Instagram to get my latest recipes and meal prep tips!

Comments

  1. Jessica says

    December 3, 2019 at 08:22

    Do you had the half cup of reserved pasta water back to the pot before adding the veggies?

    Reply
    • Taylor Stinson says

      December 3, 2019 at 08:52

      You add it back with the pasta – sorry this was unclear in the recipe directions, I have just updated them now 🙂

      Reply
  2. Lauren says

    March 16, 2019 at 15:00

    This looks delicious!! If using pesto from a jar, how much do you suggest?? Thx!

    Reply
    • Taylor Stinson says

      March 18, 2019 at 08:54

      About 1/4 to 1/3 of a cup should work 🙂

      Reply
  3. Kerri says

    February 17, 2019 at 13:55

    This recipe is amazing. I prepped 4 lunches and am eating the “extras” tonight for dinner. Definitely a keeper. Thanks so all these recipes. You keep my meal preps very fun and I look forward to my lunches every day.

    Reply
    • Taylor Stinson says

      February 18, 2019 at 10:53

      So happy you liked it Kerri!!! Thanks so much for the kind words 🙂

      Reply
  4. RH says

    June 6, 2018 at 10:52

    Hello!

    Is the nutrition info if you make it 6 servings or 4 servings?

    Thanks

    Reply
    • Taylor Stinson says

      June 7, 2018 at 13:08

      It’s for 6 servings!

      Reply

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Taylor Stinson

Oh hey there, welcome!!

I'm Taylor Stinson, a busy city girl living in downtown Toronto. Looking to switch up your weekly meal prep routine? I've got you covered with healthy recipes and meal planning resources. Join 1.5 million other monthly readers and dive in! MORE ABOUT ME..

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