Pasta with Sun-Dried Tomato Pesto and Mozzarella Pearls
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Quick, simple and family-approved — this pasta with sun-dried tomato pesto and fresh mozzarella pearls is delicious hot or cold.
Quick, simple, and family-approved, this pasta with sun-dried tomato pesto and fresh mozzarella pearls makes a fabulous weeknight supper, and it also doubles as a vibrant pasta salad for a cookout. Pair it with a simple arugula salad and warm crusty bread. Or for a more substantial meal, grill some Italian sausages to serve alongside. The pesto yields enough for two dinners, and it freezes nicely, too.
What you’ll need to make pasta with sun-dried tomato pesto
STEP-BY-STEP INSTRUCTIONS
To begin, bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. (Add enough salt so that the water tastes like the sea.) Cook the pasta according to the package instructions until al dente. You’ll need to reserve some of the cooking water for the sauce. It’s easy to forget to do this, so I always set a liquid measuring cup out as a visual reminder.
Meanwhile, make the pesto. In the bowl of a food processor fitted with the steel blade, combine the sun-dried tomatoes with their oil, garlic, salt, red pepper flakes, sugar, basil, pine nuts, Parmigiano-Reggiano and olive oil.
Pulse, scraping down the sides as necessary, until the mixture is finely puréed. Divide the mixture in half. Set aside.
Reserve about 1 cup of the pasta cooking water (you’ll need it for the sauce), then drain the pasta.
Add the pasta back to the pan. Add half of the pesto and stir to combine, adding the reserved pasta water little by little, until the pasta is well-coated and moistened. I usually use about 3/4 cup of the pasta water, but you may need more or less. (Refrigerate or freeze the remaining pesto for another meal.)
Taste and adjust seasoning with more salt and red pepper flakes, if necessary. Right before serving, toss in 2 tablespoons chopped basil and the mozzarella pearls (it’s important to do this right before serving so the cheese doesn’t melt from the heat of the pan).
Transfer to a serving dish or pasta bowls and serve with more grated Parmigiano-Reggiano.
You may also like
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- Spaghetti with Kale & Walnut Pesto
- Orecchiette with Sausage and Broccoli
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- Fusilli Alla Caprese
Pasta with Sun-Dried Tomatoes & Mozzarella Pearls
Quick, simple and family-approved — this pasta with sun-dried tomato pesto and fresh mozzarella pearls is delicious hot or cold.
Ingredients
- 12 oz pasta, such as fusilli, penne or farfalle
- 1 (8.5-ounce) jar sun-dried tomatoes packed in olive oil
- 2 cloves garlic
- ½ teaspoon salt, plus more for the pasta water
- ¼ teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
- ½ teaspoon sugar
- 1 cup packed fresh basil leaves, plus more for serving
- ¼ cup + 2 tablespoons pine nuts
- ½ cup freshly grated Parmigiano-Reggiano, plus more for serving
- ¼ cup extra-virgin olive oil
- 1 (8 oz) tub fresh mozzarella pearls, drained (alternatively, use a fresh mozzarella ball and cut into chunks)
Instructions
- Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. (Add enough salt so that the water tastes like the sea.) Cook the pasta according to the package instructions until al dente.
- Meanwhile, make the pesto. In the bowl of a food processor fitted with the steel blade, combine the sun-dried tomatoes with their oil, garlic, salt, red pepper flakes, sugar, basil, pine nuts, Parmigiano-Reggiano and olive oil. Pulse, scraping down the sides as necessary, until the mixture is finely puréed. Divide the mixture in half. Set aside.
- Reserve about 1 cup of the pasta cooking water (you'll need it for the sauce), then drain the pasta. Add the pasta back to the pan. Add half of the pesto and stir to combine, adding the reserved pasta water little by little, until the pasta is well-coated and moistened. I usually use about ¾ cup of pasta water. (Refrigerate or freeze the remaining pesto for another meal.) Taste and adjust seasoning with more salt and red pepper flakes, if necessary. Right before serving, toss in 2 tablespoons chopped basil and the mozzarella pearls (it's important to do this right before serving so the cheese doesn't melt from the heat of the pan). Transfer to a serving dish or pasta bowls and serve with more grated Parmigiano-Reggiano.
- Note: If you'd like to serve this pasta dish at room temperature, wait until the pasta is cool to add the mozzarella pearls.
Pair with
Nutrition Information
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- Per serving (4 servings)
- Calories: 697
- Fat: 28 g
- Saturated fat: 10 g
- Carbohydrates: 83 g
- Sugar: 15 g
- Fiber: 7 g
- Protein: 31 g
- Sodium: 533 mg
- Cholesterol: 50 mg
This website is written and produced for informational purposes only. I am not a certified nutritionist and the nutritional data on this site has not been evaluated or approved by a nutritionist or the Food and Drug Administration. Nutritional information is offered as a courtesy and should not be construed as a guarantee. The data is calculated through an online nutritional calculator, Edamam.com. Although I do my best to provide accurate nutritional information, these figures should be considered estimates only. Varying factors such as product types or brands purchased, natural fluctuations in fresh produce, and the way ingredients are processed change the effective nutritional information in any given recipe. Furthermore, different online calculators provide different results depending on their own nutrition fact sources and algorithms. To obtain the most accurate nutritional information in a given recipe, you should calculate the nutritional information with the actual ingredients used in your recipe, using your preferred nutrition calculator.
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Would walnuts work in place of the pine nuts here like you use with your basil pesto? I love eating too much to go through pine mouth. Thank you!
Sure – enjoy! 🙂
Usually when a recipe calls for me to bust out the cuisinart I start to sweat a little. Oh no, the pulsing thing. This recipe changed all that; it was so quick and simple. Came out absolutely delicious. It was a little salty for me at first (which is odd bc I’m a fiend for salt). I’d decided the next time I’d eliminate the 1/2tsp and just have the salt from the pasta water. However, the next day, the saltiness had subsided to where it was perfect. This website and my Ina Garten books are all I need to make incredible food, without fail, every time. Thanks for another winner.
I love sun-dried tomatoes. When I saw this recipe I knew I had to make it. So Good. I have also made the pesto added a bit more oil and served just the pesto with slices of toasted baguette.
Perfect way to use my ever-expanding basil! Quick question. Sometimes when I make pesto it comes out incredibly bitter. Do you have any tips for that? I’ve read it’s bc I used a food processor. Thanks for any advice.
Hi Dawn, I don’t think it would be your food processor. What brand of olive oil are you using?
I don’t know the name but I always buy what you recommend. Thanks for the response. I made this last night and it was incredible.
I enjoyed this dish so much that I literally ate it for breakfast! The nooks and crannies of the fusilli pasta caught the delicious sauce beautifully. To suit our taste for spiciness (my partner is from Mumbai), I doubled the amount of garlic and chili pepper flakes. Thank you, Jenn! I’ve only tried a handful of your recipes so far, but they’ve all been delicious.
Okay – this is my third review today of recipes we’ve recently tried – my husband wants to know if you’ve moved into our house because we’re always using recipes from your website or cookbook! Once again, this one was SUPER DELICIOUS! That pesto is out of this world – the flavors really pop without any singular ingredient stealing the show. (We’ve had other pestos that are way too heavy on the garlic.) We had the pasta dish on Monday and I just used the pesto again last night as a spread for a grilled chicken sandwich. SO GOOD!
Can’t wait to see what my next venture will be. Whatever it is I know it will be scrumptious!
❤️
The pesto has become a family staple. It so easy and adds so much flavor to pasta night. Once in the fridge, the kids can break it out if they are making their own lunches. We even use it as a spread for crackers. It is delicious. Thanks.
Hi Jenn, I thought I’d make this for a bbq, but just found out that a guest is allergic to tree nuts. I know that pine nuts are an important ingredient in pesto, so do you think it will still be good if I omit them? If so, would you recommend any other changes? Thank you!
Hi Donna, I wouldn’t leave the nuts out as they play an important part in the pesto. I haven’t tried this with anything like pepitas or sunflower seeds so I can’t say for sure how it will turn out, but you could experiment with that. I see online that there are some nut-free pesto recipes, so you may want to give one of those a try.
I was afraid that might be the case. Your recipes are all so good that I don’t want to experiment 🙂
I’ve decided to make your Fusilli Alla Caprese instead and I’ll try this one another time. Thanks so much for your reply!
My husband mistakenly made this dish without the pine nuts and it turned out fine with no other modifications.
Thanks for the info Val 🙂
This is delicious!! Second time I have made this and it’s a hit. Love the mozzarella pearls and the fresh basil. Very quick and easy. Thanks Jenn for another winner.
I made this last night and it was really delicious! Even my über-picky son liked it, so that says a lot. Thanks for all of your great recipes!
Loved it! Family loved it! Thank you!
I have a package of dried sundried tomatoes, could I soak a certain amount of these in good quality olive oil to approximate packed in oil?
Sue, Lisa, I think that should work. Enjoy!
Thank you! Wonderful, flavourful recipe. I didn’t have pine nuts so used almonds instead. Even my 8 year old loved it!
This is delicious and was so easy! Def one I will come back to. You never disappoint 🙂
❤️
What is the recommendation for using frozen left overs? Do you de thaw in fridge or set chair in warm water?
I’d thaw in the fridge. 🙂
If you want to use the frozen pesto, how do you recommend warming up prior to adding to pasta?
Hi Francis, You can heat it up gently in the microwave. Hope that helps!
Could I use walnuts instead of pine nuts (as I already have them from the green pesto dish—LOVED) or do you think the pine nut flavor is more complimentary for this dish? Thanks so much (I have made 5+ dishes from you and you make me enjoy cooking)!
Sorry for the repeat question I scrolled far enough and saw you already told someone yes!
I love this recipe. The pesto can be made a day or two ahead, stored in the refrig until you are ready to make the dish. I also love this pesto spread on bread, toast, crackers or I spread it on celery. I am addicted to the pesto. Jenn’s cookbook and site are my first stop for delicious recipes.💕
What can I substitute mozzarella pearls with? I would like to keep the Parmigiano-Reggiano. I think my guests may not want too much cheese. What do you recommend? I want to make it this Sunday. Thanks.
Hi Upasana, I would just leave them out; it will still be delicious.
Hi Upsana, you could brown some Italian sausages and serve it mixed in or alongside the pasta. Hope you enjoy!
Hi Jen,
I’m thinking about making this for a potluck cookout so wanted to know if I could make it the night before then add mozzarella and basil next day at mealtime. I know you said it’s good room temp, but can it be refrigerated overnight and served cold?
Hi Kelly, It’s fine to make a day ahead and refrigerate but I’d let it sit out a bit before serving to take the chill off. Hope that helps!
Is this recipe in your cookbook? my aunt made it for us the other day, and it was absolutely spectacular!
Glad you enjoyed it, Jessica! This one is not in my cookbook but my Spaghetti with Kale and Walnut Pesto is. 😊
I’m curious to know if it could be possible to make this pesto with an immersion hand blender?
Unfortunately, I don’t think an immersion blender will work here; I don’t think it would be able to get through the sun-dried tomatoes and basil without getting stuck in the blades. Sorry!
Made this for dinner last night and the sundried tomato pesto was absolutely delicious! Hubby and I both went back for seconds and hubby is still talking about it the morning after. The mozzarella pearls I bought from Whole Foods were quite large, so I halved/quartered them… which could cut down on the ‘rubbery’ consistency some other reviewers experienced. Served with a simple side salad. This is probably the 5th recipe I’ve made from this site and loving all of them – thanks Jenn!
My friend says he only likes his pasta with pesto. Weird, right?! After so many times making him a basil pesto, I tried this sun-dried tomato one. He LOVED it! Thank you.
Love this recipe! It is very easy to make. I altered the recipe and added more pesto, which I thought gave it more flavor.
Hi Jenn: I have two questions due to a dietary restriction.
Would the cooking water from gluten free pasta work to add to the pesto?
Would we use this pesto to make a shrimp dish without the pasta? In this case, there wouldn’t be pasta water either. Would something else need to be substituted?
Leslie
Hi Leslie, I wasn’t 100% sure about either of your questions, so researched it and found that the cooking water from gluten-free pasta may not be quite starchy enough for what you need here and that if you want to make a shrimp dish with no pasta a great replacement (in both cases) is water mixed with cornstarch! You can get some more details about it here. Hope that helps!
Thank you, Jenn. I really appreciate your help.
No thanks. The flavor was so strong. I was so excited to be able to use the basil I grew. But this was just a bit too much.
Great recipe! I was looking for a new pasta recipe, and this one will definitely be made again, minus the mozzarella pearls. I never met a cheese I didn’t love till I tasted mozzarella pearls. They actually took away from the amazing pesto, so I just pushed them aside and ate the pasta. My husband, on the other hand, loved them.
You replied in one of the reviews that leftover pasta can be re-heated with pesto and a bit of water or olive oil. If I made the pasta ahead the day before can I reheat before serving the same way? I would be making a double recipe.
Yes, Jo, I’d reheat it that same way. If you plan to wait until the second day to eat it, I’d add the mozzarella after you reheat it.
I can’t find Mozzarella pearls, can it be substituted by Bocconcini pearls? Do they have the same taste? Thanks
Sure, Cel, I believe they’re pretty interchangeable. Hope you enjoy!
I’ve been looking for a good pasta recipe for awhile now (ever since we got tired of canned/jarred pasta sauce) and this was delicious! It was also so so so easy. I much prefer to bake and am not much of a cook, but for the 2nd time in 9 years, my husband said something I made was “delicious” and, for the 1st time(!), that he’d like me to make it again.
I will definitely make this again. There were a few edits because I either couldn’t find an ingredient or my husband doesn’t really like cheese – I used a jar of sun-dried tomatoes with pine nuts (which was helpful bc I couldn’t find pine nuts in my grocery store), couldn’t find fresh basil so used some slightly dehydrated basil in the produce area, cut the parmesan in the pesto in half, and omitted the mozzarella pearls. It was still so delicious and so easy! Thank you for such a great and easy recipe!
Another Yummy one! Thanks Jen!
Without exception,this recipe and EVERY recipe in your cookbook AND on your website is sooo easy and so delicious! I added fresh corn sauteed with onion in olive oil after everything was mixed together. It was a huge hit!
Absolutely delicious! I paired it with your Parmesan Crusted Chicken and a simple salad.
I will make this again for sure!
This recipe was delicious. My husband is usually weary of dinners that don’t include any meat, but this was so delicious he didn’t even notice. The fresh mozzarella adds a great texture and the pesto was surprisingly easy to make. Love how accessible/easy your recipes are while still tasting like fine dining! Your recipes make me feel like I can actually cook!
I LOVE this, but not with pasta, I found the mozzarella a bland and rubbery addition to the dish, it was ok but not my favorite pasta dish, However, just the pesto as a dip or spread on grilled crostini was out of this world!!! The reserved half that the recipe makes was eaten plain by the spoonful and it is swoon-worthy.
Hi! My kids are in love with your dishes and are eager to try this one…the thing is, they have nut allergies. Do you suggest I try the recipe without the pine nuts, or is there another ingredient I can substitute in for the pesto? Thank you!
Hi Christine, You could just leave the nuts out – the sun-dried tomatoes give the sauce plenty of body. Add more cheese if you think it’s missing something. Hope that helps and so happy your kids like the recipes!
So delicious and easy to make! A hit with my pasta loving husband as well.
Really delicious recipe! Quick question how long would the pesto keep in the fridge? Thanks
Glad you liked it! The pesto should keep well in the fridge for up to about 3 days.
Hi Jen,
Just wondering… you say to use half the batch of pesto for this recipe. Approximately how much would that be?
Laurie
Hi Laurie, It’s about a cup. Hope that helps!
I’ve made this already and it was amazing!!! I was wondering if this could be made ahead and served cold?
Hi Vikki, Yes definitely – it’s good at room temperature. Just wait to add the mozzarella until the pasta is cool, otherwise it will start to melt.
Hi Jenn,
Looking forward to trying this one! Quick question though: your red pesto includes 1/4 cup olive oil in this recipe, but you don’t seem to add any olive oil to the red pesto recipe of your grilled cheese sandwich… maybe just an oversight? thanks!!
Hi Marine, That’s correct – this one needs more to moisten the pasta. 🙂
Hi Jenn:
I’ve got packaged sun dried tomatoes. Can I use them and add 3/4 c olive oil? I haven’t made it yet but am a big fan.
Hi Susan, I think it would work, but that you’d need to rehydrate the tomatoes first. Am I’m not 100 percent sure how much olive oil you’ll need to add to make the pesto, but I’d start the 3/4 cup that you mentioned and then add more if necessary. Hope you enjoy!
I made this recipe last night for my family and it was incredibly delicious AND easy. We loved the mozzarella pearls!
Perfetto!
Hi Jen,
I am going to make this tomorrow night but would like it as a main dish so I want to add a protein to it. I was thinking shrimp – any recommendation on how to do that? I would use uncooked tail on frozen shrimp.
Thanks as always!
Hi Elizabeth, I think shrimp would be great with this. I’d sauté them separately in a little olive with garlic, salt and pepper, then add them to the pasta along with the pesto. Keep in mind that you may need a bit more than half of the pesto sauce. I’d love to know how it turns out!
It was delicious! I did just what you suggested – sauteed the shrimp with some butter and garlic and added it in. The pesto is incredibly easy – I made the pesto and then put the dish together right after work in about 15 minutes. The flavor is great and I’m excited to figure out what to do with the rest of the pesto!
So glad you enjoyed it, Elizabeth. I love this pesto on grilled cheese sandwiches with fontina or even smoked gouda.
Very good pesto!! Could not find mozzarella pearls so I left them out and added more parmesean-reggiano.
Questions: how long can I refrigerate the other half of the pesto before freezing? And, can I reheat the left over pasta with pesto sauce?
Glad you enjoyed it, Diane! I’d say you could keep the pesto in the fridge for up to 3 days before freezing. And yes, you can definitely reheat the pasta with pesto sauce; just keep in mind you may need to add a bit of water or olive oil to re-moisten it.
I really liked this recipe but my family didn’t. I think if I made it again, I would happily skip the mozzarella pearls. To me, they just add more fat to the recipe without a huge taste payoff. The sundried tomato base recipe is so yummy, I could probably eat it by the spoon.
The pesto is absolutely delicious! My mind is spinning with other uses for it.
Glad you like it! It’s wonderful on grilled cheese, too.
HI Jenn….I purchased a ball of burrata for your tomato salad…would this be a good substitute (cut up of course) for the pearls? Thank you in advance…you rock the kitchen world!
Hi Gail, While it would be delicious, I don’t think burrata would work here as it has a much softer, runnier consistency than the mozzarella pearls. Sorry!
🙏
Looking for a new pasta salad to serve at a picnic. This looks delicious. Can it be served cold?
Hi Susan, I’d serve it room temperature if possible otherwise cold will work. I’d love to know how it turns out!
Could walnuts be substituted for the pine nuts?
Yes definitely, Pat – I often do that.