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Creamy Pea and Artichoke Pesto Pasta Salad

[heart_this] · Aug 27, 2009 · 31 Comments

Creamy Pea and Artichoke Pesto Pasta Salad

I have been wanting to try making a pasta salad for a while now and when I came across this recipe for a pesto pasta salad on Savoury Sweet Life I could not resist making it right away. Pasta salads are salads formed with a base of pasta and pretty much anything that you can think of can be added after that. Pasta salads are normally served chilled and often have a mayo based dressing. This pasta salad has mayo in the dressing but the dressing is primarily based on freshly made basil pesto. I really liked the sound of combining the creamy and tangy mayo and with the fresh pesto and I just had to try it. Not only did the dressing for this pasta salad sound good but it also contains two other great ingredients, artichoke hearts and peas. Luckily I was still able to find some fresh peas at the farmers market but frozen would also work well. This pasta salad came together easily with the hardest part being the waiting for it to chill in the fridge. The creamy pea and artichoke pesto pasta salad turned out great! It really was nice and creamy and the pesto and mayo dressing was nice and tangy and fresh and really tasty. As I found out just recently, peas go really well with mayo and they added a nice hit of sweetness to this pasta salad. The salad tasted great after chilling for just a half an hour but it tasted even better the day after when the flavours had had a chance to mingle a bit. With a pasta salad under my belt next up to try is a potato salad.

Creamy Pea and Artichoke Pesto Pasta Salad

Creamy Pea and Artichoke Pesto Pasta Salad

Prep Time: 20 minutes Cook Time: 10 minutes Total Time: 30 minutes Servings: 4
ingredients
  • 1/2 pound penne (I used whole wheat) (gluten free for gluten free)
  • 1 cup basil pesto
  • 1/3 cup mayonnaise
  • 1 cup peas
  • 1 cup artichoke hearts (quartered)
  • parmigiano reggiano to taste (grated)
directions
  1. Cook the pasta as directed on the package.
  2. Mix the pesto and the mayonnaise in a bowl.
  3. Toss the pasta in the pesto mixture along with the peas.
  4. Gently fold in the artichoke hearts.
  5. Let chill in the fridge for 20 minutes or more.
  6. Serve garnished with the grated parmigiano reggiano.
Similar Recipes:
Avocado BLT Pasta Salad
Fresh Pea Salad
Basil Pesto on Penne
Asparagus and Zucchini Farro Salad
Meyer Lemon Pesto and Feta Pasta with Shrimp
Artichoke and Spinach Frittata
Fresh Pea Risotto with Spicy Grilled Shrimp
Asparagus and Ramp Pesto Mac n Cheese
Spaghetti alla Carbonara with Peas
Dill Pickle Potato Salad

Looking for more salad recipes?

Food, Gluten-free, Pasta, Recipe, Salad, Side Dish, Vegetable

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Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. The Bella Girls says

    August 27, 2009 at 10:22 pm

    Wow…this picture made me hungry. Looks delicious!

    ~Camberley

    Reply
  2. Livestrong says

    August 27, 2009 at 10:30 pm

    I'm trying this tonight! Sounds great!

    Reply
  3. VeggieGirl says

    August 27, 2009 at 10:44 pm

    Perfect summer pasta dish!

    Reply
  4. The Duo Dishes says

    August 27, 2009 at 10:49 pm

    Awesome picture. All the green really pops! Also: One of the things we like about you is your lack of fear when it comes to mayo! It really adds to sauces and such.

    Reply
  5. Cathy - wheresmydamnanswer says

    August 27, 2009 at 11:32 pm

    What a great combination!! Looks wonderful

    Reply
  6. Anncoo says

    August 28, 2009 at 1:21 am

    This sounds good. My hubby would definitely love this :}

    Reply
  7. Divina Pe says

    August 28, 2009 at 1:24 am

    Lovely photo and a great dish to try one of these days. Thanks Kevin.

    Reply
  8. Michelle says

    August 28, 2009 at 1:26 am

    pasta, pesto and artichokes, some of my favorite things and even better together. Thanks for this!

    Reply
  9. teresa says

    August 28, 2009 at 2:11 am

    this looks so summery and delicious!

    Reply
  10. Irene says

    August 28, 2009 at 2:30 am

    seriously, that sounds SO GOOD right now!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

    Reply
  11. Lynda says

    August 28, 2009 at 3:14 am

    This is a beautiful, delicious looking salad! I love pasta salads and am always looking for new ones..and here it is! Thanks for posting it!

    Reply
  12. Deborah says

    August 28, 2009 at 3:16 am

    I love pasta salad, and I love pesto. Sounds great!

    Reply
  13. Nina Timm says

    August 28, 2009 at 3:20 am

    I will have to overlook the price of artichokes to make this …..and I most definitely will make this!!!

    Reply
  14. Elizabeth says

    August 28, 2009 at 3:36 am

    This looks awesome and I don't even like peas! Now that is impressive, Kevin!

    Reply
  15. toni says

    August 28, 2009 at 4:27 am

    Peas and artichokes – to me, this spells perfection!

    Reply
  16. Rosa's Yummy Yums says

    August 28, 2009 at 5:05 am

    So mouthwatering! Yummy!

    Cheers,

    Rosa

    Reply
  17. Tender Branson says

    August 28, 2009 at 10:45 am

    Looks great…thanks for sharing.

    Reply
  18. Joanne says

    August 28, 2009 at 12:15 pm

    I love non-mayo pasta salads but I bet this would be great with Greek yogurt subbed in for the mayo. I love the pea and artichoke additions. It looks so creamy!

    Reply
  19. Soma says

    August 28, 2009 at 2:51 pm

    Refreshing flavorful summer treat!

    Reply
  20. Hillary says

    August 28, 2009 at 9:25 pm

    Great pasta salad Kevin! Here's to another great penne recipe.

    Reply
  21. Andrea says

    August 28, 2009 at 9:41 pm

    Great recipe and great pic. Sounds like the perfect dish for my husband who loves all those ingredients.

    Reply
  22. eatme_delicious says

    August 28, 2009 at 10:34 pm

    Another yummy dish of yours Kevin! I must try it. I love pesto and love pasta salads.

    Reply
  23. Jennifer says

    August 29, 2009 at 10:41 am

    I LOVE pesto, this pasta salad sounds amazing! This would be fabulous accompiant to grilled chicken.

    Reply
  24. Chris says

    August 29, 2009 at 3:34 pm

    That would be awesome on a hot summer evening. Nice dish!

    Reply
  25. Chef Fresco says

    August 30, 2009 at 1:19 pm

    I like your addition of peas to this dish! We made a similar asparagus pesto dish and loved it.

    Reply
  26. meeso says

    August 30, 2009 at 4:12 pm

    I'm not much of a pasta person, unless it's something light like this… looks great!

    Reply
  27. alice says

    August 31, 2009 at 2:33 pm

    Hey Kevin,
    Glad you liked the salad. This is a very popular pesto salad dish from one of my favorite pizzerias in Seattle. I've even added chicken to it and it tastes awesome!

    PS:Thanks for the mention!

    Reply
  28. Anonymous says

    September 1, 2009 at 8:59 pm

    this is one of my favorite type dishes!

    Reply
  29. Erin says

    October 28, 2009 at 6:37 am

    My friend made this for a "Three Peas in a Pod" themed triplet baby shower, and OH MY this is delicious! Thanks for sharing!

    Reply
  30. Blondie says

    August 17, 2018 at 8:16 pm

    Are the artichokes canned?

    Reply
    • kevin says

      August 20, 2018 at 1:17 pm

      I tend to use canned for convienience but fresh peeled and cooked also works!

      Reply

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Kevin: I came to realize that my meals were boring and that I had been eating the same few dishes over and over again for years. It was time for a change! I now spend my free time searching for, creating and trying tasty new recipes in my closet sized kitchen.
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