I bought 2 lbs of basil last weekend at the farm. Who am I? And am I planning to cook for an army of humans? Obviously Basil Vinaigrette Pasta was the natural way to put all of it to use!
If you've never made basil vinaigrette before, you need to drop whatever you're doing right this very minute, go to the store, buy all the ingredients, and then go find yourself a blender. It's the best multi-use sauce you could possibly make this summer, and it goes on EVERYTHING. You can put it on pasta, you can put it on chicken, you can put it on toast, and even on eggs! Like literally - case in point right here. But today, it's on this Basil Vinaigrette Pasta.
This time around the basil vinaigrette is getting tossed with some fresh short pasta and some summer veggies. It's perfection. The zucchini gives it some bite, the basil infuses everything it touches and the pasta is al dente just the way I like it. It's truly one of the easiest summer pasta dishes you could make! Serve it hot, cold or at room temperature and you're in business! And it will double as an incredible leftover lunch the next day! I know I said this is the only summer pasta recipe you'll need but I have another one to add to that list: my epic Summer Ratatouille Pasta recipe is an essential to this season!
And if you want to make a double batch of basil vinaigrette - be my guest! I made a triple batch and then froze it in ice cube trays so I could pop a few out whenever needed and use it on basically every summer recipe from now until October! It's also the best hack for winter when all the amazing fresh produce isn't as abundant everywhere. So if you need to add a little pizazz to any dish at a moment's notice, you can just pop a frozen cube of basil vinaigrette out of your freezer and voila, you have a little touch of summer in the dead of winter!
Stuck in a dinner rut? Looking for new delicious dinner ideas? Check out my roundup of 50+ easy dinner ideas here.
Basil Vinaigrette Pasta
Ingredients
- 1 pound pasta
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 2 cloves garlic
- 2 shallots thinly sliced
- ½ teaspoon red pepper flakes
- 1 zucchini cut into coins and quartered
- Kosher salt and freshly cracked black pepper
- 1 lemon juiced
- Fresh basil and parmesan to garnish
For the Basil Vinaigrette:
- 1 shallot roughly chopped
- 2 cups tightly packed fresh basil leaves stems removed (about 4 ounces)
- 1 clove garlic
- ½ teaspoons red pepper flakes
- ½ cup olive oil
- 2 tablespoons red wine vinegar
- 1 teaspoon salt
Instructions
- Cook the pasta according to the package directions until al dente. Drain and set aside.
- In a large skillet, heat the olive oil over medium heat. Add the garlic and shallot and red pepper flakes and sauté until fragrant. Add the zucchini and saute until just soft. Add the pasta and ½ cup of basil vinaigrette and toss to combine. Add more basil vinaigrette as needed. Season with salt and pepper and lemon juice and serve.
For the Basil Vinaigrette:
- Combine all the ingredients for the basil vinaigrette in a high powered blender and blend for 60 seconds until very smooth. Taste and adjust salt and pepper as needed.
I made this pasta tonight for the second time! Tonight I used whole wheat penne pasta, and added cooked shrimp after the zucchini just started to soften. It was incredible. I have leftovers, but can’t wait to make it again!
Would this feed 6 adults and some toddlers, or should I double?
1 lb of pasta is enough for 6 people
This was seriously the best pasta ever. My son ate 2 bowls and asked me to please make it again! Thank you!!
SO happy to hear that! xoxo
This is so delicious! Tried it for the first time several days ago and today made a double batch of the vinaigrette so we can have it on hand always! Trader Joes has 4oz containers of basil for $2.79 currently! So easy to make. For the pasta part of this dish I recommend using multiple zucchinis, I felt like 1 (even though we used a huge one) wasn’t enough for a pound of pasta.
This. Was. Amazing. Even my meat loving husband agreed!
One of my favorite dishes! I’ll definitely be making this again. My family LOVED it!
How long can this vinaigrette be kept fresh in the refrigerator?
4-5 days! forever in the freezer
This Basil Vinaigrette is EVERYTHING!!!!
I recently went dairy-free and I missed pesto. This was a nice option. The sauce by itself is a little bitter due to the vinegar, but it was super yummy mixed together. I think the sweetness of the veggies really stood out. Yum!
This pasta is amazing. Fresh, simple, clean, and delicious. My kids tore it apart tonight, even my picky eater who normally won’t even let me put butter on her pasta! This is going on the weekly recipe list for sure!
I didn’t have any peas or asparagus so I used steam in a bag green beans, I just took a minute off the cook time. I also used the Barilla veggie rotini bc it’s what I had. It was SO GOOD. I planned on making chicken with it but ran out of time, and I’m glad because it would’ve been too much food.
This was our dinner tonight and it was super delish!!! My basil was going crazy so I was happy to find a good use for it. Grilled up some salmon to go with - perfect Summer din din 🙂
SO happy to hear it!! xx
This pasta shape is reminding me of grubs
What kind of pasta is that? It's so unique to look at! Gonna try this recipe asap!
Oooooh, I love this for a quick and delicious summer meal. Basil is the bomb!
O M G! The basil Vinaigrette is da bomb! Thanks for the recipe!
-Gabby (yes! 2 b's) best name ever right?