Pasta with Sun-dried Tomato Ricotta Pesto

by Anna Chwistek

Pasta with sun-dried tomato ricotta pesto. This creamy red pesto could very well be your next obsession. The hearty sun-dried tomato ricotta pesto is a velvety, flavor packed sauce that might make you crave for pasta night. It’s bright, light and satisfying.

serving dumplings | Pasta with sun-dried tomato pesto and ricotta

Pesto is an insanely flexible and delicious sauce. In this recipe, we use semi-dried tomatoes, pine nuts, ricotta and a little bit of delicate white miso for an intensely vibrant, smooth pesto. Because the sauce is so rich, we can keep this dish simple and only add crispy baked pancetta. Once the pasta is cooked, we toss it with the pesto and top with toasted pine nuts. It’s ready in no-time and incredibly delicious.
Let me guide you through the recipe with this step-by-step VIDEO.

serving dumplings | Pasta with sun-dried tomato pesto and ricotta

RECIPE NOTES

  • pesto and pasta are a match made in heaven, but this pesto is also heavenly when spread onto sandwiches stuffed with roasted vegetables
  • no pancetta? Use bacon or swap it for shrimps. Or leave it out for a brilliant vegetarian dinner
  • serve with a simple salad drizzled with olive oil and balsamic vinegar

serving dumplings | Pasta with sun-dried tomato pesto and ricotta

Cooking Video

Pasta with Sun-Dried Tomato Ricotta Pesto
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Yield: serves 2

Pasta with Sun-Dried Tomato Ricotta Pesto

Pasta with sun-dried tomato ricotta pesto
Prep Time 5 minutes
Cook Time 15 minutes
Total Time 20 minutes

Ingredients

  • 200 g/7 oz pasta, like rigatoni, paccheri or penne
  • 170 g/6 oz pancetta, or bacon, cut into cubes
  • 2 garlic cloves, minced
  • 1 tbsp olive oil
  • 3 tbsp pine nuts
  • fresh thyme, for serving (optional)

sun-dried tomato ricotta pesto

  • 140 g/5 oz semi-dried tomatoes, drained (oil reserved)
  • 120 g/4.5 oz ricotta
  • 30 g/1 oz toasted pine nuts
  • 1/3 cup/80 ml oil from the sun-dried tomatoes
  • 1 tsp miso
  • 1 tbsp lemon juice
  • 1 tsp crushed red chili flakes, or as much as you can handle
  • 1 tsp smoked paprika
  • 1/2 tsp black pepper

Instructions

    1. Cook the pasta in salted water until al dente. Drain, reserving 1/2 cup of the cooking water.
    2. Make the pesto. Add sun-dried tomatoes, ricotta, pine nuts, lemon juice, miso, chili flakes, smoked paprika and black pepper to your food processor. Purée until finely chopped. Add oil and process until smooth.
    3. Heat olive oil in a large skillet over medium high heat. Add pancetta and cook, 3 minutes. Discard any excess fat from pancetta, if needed. Add pine nuts, cook, tossing often, until pancetta is browned and crisp, about 5 minutes. Add garlic and sauté until soft over low heat, 1-2 minutes.
    4. Add pesto and bring to a simmer over low heat, about 1 minute. Just until warmth through and well combined with pancetta, then immediately turn off the heat. Add pasta and 1/4 pasta water, toss while adding more cooking liquid until pasta is glossy and well coated with sauce. Taste and add more black pepper if needed. (If you’re not using pancetta, taste and add salt).
    5. Divide pasta among bowls. Sprinkle with extra freshly ground black pepper and garnish with thyme, eat!

Notes

Calories Per Serving: 543 kcal
Nutritional information is only an estimate. The accuracy of the nutritional information for any recipe on this site is not guaranteed.

Did you make this recipe?

Let me know! Leave a comment on the blog or share a photo on Instagram and don’t forget to tag me with @anna_s_table or #servingdumplings I’d love to see what you’re making. Happy cooking!

© Anna Chwistek
Category: Pasta | Rice | Barley
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9 comments

  • I made this last night for dinner. The few things I did differently: I seared scallops instead of pancetta, added a splash of cream at the end since I forgot to save pasta water, and tossed in largely chopped garden tomatoes. Served with a simple green salad….. it was amazing! Thank you for the great recipe!

    Reply

  • We had this for dinner and it was amazing! Loved the flavors. I’m wondering how large a serving is for the calories? Thank you!

    Reply

  • We had this for dinner tonight and it was amazing! Loved the flavors. I’m wondering how big a serving is for the calories? Thank you!

    Reply

    • Hi Meghan, I’m so happy you enjoyed this recipe, thanks for giving it a try.
      It’s 543 kcal per serving. Have a wonderful day!

      Reply

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