Double Tomato Pesto Spaghetti with Zucchini Noodles
This fresh summer recipe features burst cherry tomatoes, cherry tomato and sun-dried tomato pesto, zucchini noodles and spaghetti! It's light and delicious.
Updated by Kathryne Taylor on August 14, 2024
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Beep beep. Boop boop. One zero one zero zero zero one. I. Am. Recipe. Robot. Yeeeeesh, sorry, I am a little sleep deprived over here. I’ve been working almost around the clock on the cookbook manuscript, analyzing the logic and clarity behind every list and instruction, while trying to make the head notes as informative and entertaining as they can be.
I read through all 115 recipes yesterday with a fine-tooth comb. My publisher wants Oxford commas in the book and I’m an AP style girl, so my commas are all mixed up right now. Among other things. Zero zero one boop.
I took a break to share this recipe with you all. It was supposed to be a pretty straightforward riff on a recipe I found in July’s Bon Appetit magazine, a cherry tomato and walnut pesto. However, their recipe called for anchovies, and a lot of olive oil and Parmesan, and I need energizing meals right now.
It also suggested cranking up the oven for the walnuts and cherry tomatoes, and I wanted to make it all on the stovetop since it’s so hot outside. When I made a lightened-up version of it without anchovies, on the stove, it turned out lackluster.
I took Cookie on a walk after my disappointing pasta experience, and had a light bulb moment along the way: sun-dried tomatoes. Sun-dried tomatoes have lots of umami in them like anchovies and Parmesan do, and they seemed like an obvious fit with burst cherry tomatoes. Boom! We had ourselves a winner. My final adjustment was to replace some of the pasta with zucchini noodles, which makes it even more fresh. Make it for dinner tonight?
Double Tomato Pesto Spaghetti with Zucchini Noodles
This fresh summer recipe features burst cherry tomatoes, cherry tomato and sun-dried tomato pesto, zucchini noodles and spaghetti! It’s light and delicious. Recipe yields 4 servings.
Ingredients
Pasta and zucchini noodles (see notes for alternatives)
- 8 ounces whole grain spaghetti (DeLallo is my favorite)
- 1 large zucchini
Pesto
- ⅔ cup walnuts
- 2 pints (4 cups) cherry or grape tomatoes
- 2 tablespoons olive oil, plus more for drizzling
- ¼ cup oil-packed sun-dried tomatoes, rinsed and drained
- 2 garlic cloves, roughly chopped
- ½ teaspoon finely grated lemon zest
- 1 to 2 tablespoons lemon juice
- ¼ teaspoon red pepper flakes
- ¼ teaspoon salt, to taste
- Freshly ground black pepper, to taste
Garnishes
- ½ cup lightly packed basil leaves, larger leaves torn into small pieces
- Freshly grated Parmesan cheese or vegan Parmesan, for serving (both optional)
- Olive oil, for drizzling
Instructions
- Bring a large pot of salted water to boil for the spaghetti. Cook the pasta until al dente, according to package directions. Drain and transfer to a large serving bowl. Spiralize the zucchini with a spiralizer (here’s how), or turn the zucchini into noodles with a julienne peeler, or grate the zucchini the long way on a large box grater.
- Toast the walnuts: In a medium skillet over medium heat, cook the walnuts, stirring occasionally, until they smell nice and fragrant, about 7 minutes. Set aside to cool.
- Cook the cherry tomatoes: In a large saucepan over medium-high heat, combine the cherry tomatoes, olive oil and a pinch of salt. Cover the pot and cook, stirring occasionally, until the tomatoes have burst open and they are cooking in their own juices, about 7 to 8 minutes. Set aside.
- In a food processor, combine the walnuts, half of the cooked tomatoes, sun-dried tomatoes, garlic, lemon zest, 1 tablespoon lemon juice, red pepper flakes, ¼ teaspoon salt and several twists of freshly ground black pepper. Blend until the mixture is pretty smooth, then season to taste with additional lemon juice, salt and/or pepper until the flavors really sing (if that doesn’t do the trick, add some more sun-dried tomatoes). Blend again.
- Pour the pesto over the spaghetti and toss to combine. If you’ll be consuming this dish in one sitting, go ahead and toss in all of the zucchini noodles now, too. (If you plan on having leftovers, store the zucchini noodles separately from the rest, as they leach water when they’re exposed to salt—I just pile the noodles on top of my individual bowls and wait to stir them in when I’m ready to eat. Hope that makes sense.)
- Pour the rest of the cherry tomatoes on top of the dish, and sprinkle the basil over them. Toss gently, and divide the mixture into bowls. Top individual bowls with Parmesan or nutritional yeast, if you’d like, and a light drizzle of olive oil. Serve immediately.
Notes
Recipe adapted from Bon Appetit’s spaghetti with tomato and walnut pesto.
Make it dairy free/vegan: Either omit the Parmesan, or replace it with a sprinkle of vegan Parm or nutritional yeast. The sun-dried tomatoes make it plenty savory.
Make it gluten free: Use your favorite gluten-free pasta, or serve entirely with zucchini noodles.
Make it nut free: Technically pine nuts are seeds, so if those work for you, try about ⅓ cup pine nuts instead of walnuts. I often use pepitas in pestos, but I’m not sure they’d work well with the tomatoes here. You would still get a really tasty tomato sauce without any nuts/seeds at all.
Change it up: You could make this with all zucchini noodles instead of spaghetti (I think you’d need about 3 large zucchini) or all spaghetti (you’d need a full 12 ounces).
If you love this recipe: Check out my pasta archives here.
Nutrition
The information shown is an estimate provided by an online nutrition calculator. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice. See our full nutrition disclosure here.
This double tomato pesto…OMG. I use it on everything. Last night, a pile of greens, two fried eggs, your tomato pesto, topped with black olives. Mmmmmmm. This is amazing with eggs, eggplant, brown rice pasta….or just off the spoon. As a result of this pesto, I ordered your cookbook. How’s that for ROI? Tonight, spinach artichoke enchiladas, and blueberry almond crumble for dessert.
YES it’s such a versatile sauce! And I’m so glad it convinced you to get the book! That’s a solid return, if I say so myself. :) Thanks for the kind comment, Karen!
This was refreshing for a warm summer day! I am just getting started on being vegetarian and this dish, on day 2, saved me. I had the sauce, made per the recipe minus chili flakes, with soba noodles for extra protein and fiber. It was hearty without being heavy. I’ll definitely make it again!
Awesome! Good luck on your new adventure, Essie. :) I think you’ll like the plant-based life!
im te kaitao maori pono
Kia Kaha ehoa i te tunu!!
Atu te tote!!!!
Kumea Hugs
Hi, Adorable Kate (and a head pat for Cookie!)
I’ve made this twice now–it’s delicious.
I have to be careful which recipes I choose because I can’t buy more than two dinner meals worth of groceries at a time. I need a recipe that can convert well into groceries for one person and for maximum two meals. (I have struggled with bulimia as a coping skill for so many years that I know near daily marketing is the way for me to succeed with health and happiness.) This recipe translates beautifully.
I used ginger instead of garlic and left out the oil and it was absolutely scrumptious and satisfying. I love the idea of half zoodles and half wheat noodles. I recently got a handheld spiralizer and, although I love zucchini noodles, I feel the veggies were not satisfying without adding lots of cheese or vegetarian “meat.” The combo noddles solved this perfectly: so incredibly Delish and satisfying.
P.S. I ordered your cookbook via my local library; I excitedly waiting!
Hi, Kimberly! What a kind and thoughtful comment–thank you! I’m so glad my recipes are workable with your habits, and help you stay on the wellness track. :) Self-awareness is such a hard trait to develop, so you should be incredibly proud that you found a coping mechanism that works well for you and keeps your body and mind healthy. I hope you love the book once you get the chance to check it out!
I made this last night and it was so easy, light, and delicious. I followed the recipe and (as Kate suggests) added a little more sun dried tomato for added flavor. The lemon really balances the flavors and the red pepper adds a perfect amount of spice. Served with half/half brown rice spaghetti noodles and zucchini noodles it was a delightful summer meal.
I cook from this blog on a weekly basis. When it’s just me on a daily basis.
This is too kind, Jessika! Thanks so much for taking the time to comment.
YESSS! This looks stunning
Thanks, friend!
This looks AMAZING.
I hope you get a chance to try it, Megan!
I have never been a and of sundried tomato pesto…until now! Made this yesterday but didn’t have it until today – delicious! It makes quite a bit of pesto, so I froze some in my mini muffin tin and threw the “pucks” into a bag so I can take out as much or as little as I want, whenever I want. I had it on wild rice pasta, but am anxious to try it on pizza, too. Another notch in your belt, Kate – you’ve made me a convert. Thank you!!
Oops, that first line should have read I’ve never been a FAN of sun dried tomato pesto.
Great idea for freezing the leftovers, Rose! I’m glad this helped to change your mind about tomato pesto. :)
Excellent dish, will definitely make again! Bonus: discovered how easy it is to make zucchini noodles with a vegetable peeler and a knife. Didn’t look as pretty (or as uniform) as spiralized zoodles but they functioned the exact same. Yum!
Just a heads up to the super cool vegetarians; Parmesan is not vegetarian! It must contain elements of a cow to be officially named parmesan cheese.
Kate, please address this!
Love your site but that could have been a disaster for some users.
Hi, Beth– Yes, I’ve addressed this to my readers before. I had been using Whole360 parmesan cheese, which does not use animal rennet, and once I realized that other brands do, I’ve made sure to recommend Whole360 or BelGioiso brands that are truly vegetarian. Did you make the spaghetti? Because, if not, could you please re-consider the one-star rating you’ve left on the recipe? The star ratings are really important for my standing on Google results and the visibility of my blog in searches. I understand that pointing this out is important, and I have addressed it multiple times on the blog.
Made this recipe for dinner tonight, DELICIOUS! It was so simple, came together in less than 30min, and a great way to use our cherry tomatoes and basil from our garden. We will definitely be making this again! Thank you for the recipe!
Thank you, Nicole! I’m so glad you enjoyed it. Garden-fresh produce is the best, isn’t it?
Made this tonight it is amazing! I think I will use zucchini noodles in all my pastas.
They are so useful! I love some zoodles.
This was delicious! I had left over sun-dried tomatoes and loads of cherry tomatoes in my garden so thank you for the idea! Anytime I can bust out the spiralizer I am a happy woman. Also, I’ve never commented on your blog before but I just wanted to thank you SO much for all of your advice you have about how to start a blog etc. This was a huge backbone and foundation for me when I began mine 2 years ago. Inspirational! You’re awesome, Kate! Many, many thanks!
Heather @ foodgalleygab.com
I made this last week and it was delicious! It was light and fresh yet very filling. I followed the recipe exactly and got a spiralizer for the zucchini. It made quite a bit. I found it heated up really well for lunches during the week. I just kept the zucchini separate as you suggested and tossed it in at each lunch. Thank you!
You’re welcome! Thank you, Michelle. If you would want to leave a star review since you liked it so much, I would appreciate it!
Hello, can the sauce for this recipe be frozen? Thank you
I don’t freeze all my recipes and haven’t tried it with this one yet. But if you try it, let me know!
My mom made this pasta for the family (after I pestered her to try Cooke and Kate’s recipes over and over!) and it was sooooo yummy! Amazing flavor, so healthy, and so filling. Absolutely perfect.
Thank you so much, Cat!
I have made this recipe twice and both times it has been a hit! So delicious and super easy!
Love that you have made it more than once, Marisa! Thanks for sharing. If you wouldn’t mind leaving a review since you liked it so much, that would be great!
Wow…this is great recipe and the instruction, I really love it. Thanks for sharing. 5 star for my rating.
I’m happy you like it, Anna! Thanks for sharing and for your review.
Loved it! The flavors and textures in this recipe are truly amazing. Thank you for adding an estimate of the nutritional information. Can you tell me what would be considered a serving? I am trying to keep calories and fat content down, so I am also wondering if there is any substitute you can suggest to keep the calories and fat down on this recipe.
I’ve tried several of your recipes and really love them. I will definitely be ordering your book!
You’re welcome, Patricia! Split evenly between four serving bowls, will be 1-2 cups as an estimate. Hope this helps! Could just use all zucchini noodles or change the ratio some. Thanks for your review!
I loved this recipe! This was my first time making a tomato pesto and I thought that the flavors were great! I like your recommendation of separating the zucchini noodles from the rest of the spaghetti for storage. What I ended up doing was putting the zucchini noodles in a collander and pouring the hot pasta water over it when I drained the pasta. It helped soften up the zucchini noodles a bit. Thanks for the recipe!
Thank you, Ana for sharing! Great tip!
The flavor in this was really popping! I really enjoyed the sharpness of the lemon and the bright richness of the tomatoes! Full of flavor looking forward to having again.
Thanks for sharing, Kate!
Kate, after trying out your kale pesto, which was so delicious, I was on the look out for a non-green pesto to upscale my very green meal prep for the week.
I didn’t have any walnuts so I subbed those for Brazil nuts and added a little nutritional yeast.
Absolutely delicious, tomatoes were at their best after being cooked in the saucepan and they gave a unique taste to this pesto. Also, I liked the fact that there was no need for additional oil thanks to the tomato juices :-)
I used the pesto in my white bean salad with arugula, spinach, red onion and some aromatic herbs (a mix of basil, cilantro, parsley and dill).
THANK YOU, you are my queen of pesto :-)
Thanks for sharing! I’m glad you have enjoyed both recipes, Laetitia!
This was the best sauce I’ve ever tasted. I did not do the zucchini noodles but rather regular pasta. It was better the next day. I did not have lemons so did not use lemon zest, just juice from a bottle. I used fresh orange cherry tomatoes from the farmers market. I will definitely be making this again.
Wonderful to hear, Karen!
I screenshot this from your Instagram when you posted it earlier in summer so I would have it saved for later. Made it tonight and it sure did not disappoint! I loved the strong flavors in the pesto. You never disappoint!!
I’m glad you loved it, Megan!
Love it! Regards from the Netherlands!
Thank you, Renee!
This was, honest to god, one of the most delicious recipes I’ve ever made. I couldn’t stop exclaiming “The Best Pasta in the World” when I was eating it. Thank you!!!
This looks so yummy, will make soon, thank you!
Hi Kate! Thank you very much for this creative and fun recipe. I made it last night and it was absolutely wonderful. Thank you for your hard work and dedication to making healthy, interesting, and wholesome recipes for us. I am in love with Love Real Food and can’t wait to experiment with even more recipes when the new cookbook comes out. Much love and take care!
Very tasty! Couldn’t taste that noodles were whole wheat (thankfully!) and felt so healthy with the addition of the “zoodles.” Thought overall the recipe was a little heavy on the lemon flavor, but I may have zested more than required. Will definitely be adding this to our list of favorites.
Omg! This recipe was a HUGE hit with the whole family. Both toddlers (3.5 and 2 years) cried that they didn’t want tomato sauce and then proceeded to destroy their bowls. I love zucchini, but this is a great way to sneak it in for those who are less enthusiastic.
Hooray! I’m glad your toddlers loved it too.
Hi Kate, Do you think that you could freeze the pesto portion of this recipe for the fall/winter? I have a ton of cherry tomatoes and I would love to preserve them. Thanks for all of your wonderful recipes and can’t wait to buy your new book!
Lisa
I haven’t tried freezing all of my recipes, so I can’t say for sure. But if you try it, I would love to hear how it works for you!
This is really good. Do you have any make ahead tips? Making for a party
Hi! See the notes for storage. That should help!
Hello! Is the zucchini raw?
Hi! Yes, it is raw. I hope you try it and enjoy this one, Rainey!