Pesto Cavatappi

Author: Soniya Saluja

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.

4.89 from 9 votes

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Keyword: Cavatappi Pasta, Instant Pot Pesto Cavatappi Pasta, Instant Pot Pesto Pasta, Pesto Cavatappi Pasta

Prep Time: 10

Cook Time: 5

Additional Time: 5

Total Time: 20

Servings:

Calories:

613kcal

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