{"id":4387,"date":"2026-04-12T09:48:42","date_gmt":"2026-04-12T09:48:42","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/smartkitchen30.com\/dinner\/easy-courgette-pesto-pasta-quick-weeknight-dinner\/"},"modified":"2026-04-12T10:11:42","modified_gmt":"2026-04-12T10:11:42","slug":"easy-courgette-pesto-pasta-quick-weeknight-dinner","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/smartkitchen30.com\/it\/dinner\/easy-courgette-pesto-pasta-quick-weeknight-dinner\/","title":{"rendered":"Easy Courgette Pesto Pasta: Quick Weeknight Dinner"},"content":{"rendered":"<h1>Wholesome Courgette Pesto Pasta with Cherry Tomatoes<\/h1>\n<p>Designed for busy evenings, this recipe uses minimal active time to bring a vibrant and satisfying meal to your table. It&#8217;s a perfect example of how simple, healthy ingredients, often already in your cupboard or weekly shopping basket, can be transformed into something fresh and exciting. This wholewheat pasta with courgette pesto and cherry tomatoes offers a balanced nutritional profile and a flavour that will brighten your routine. It&#8217;s an ideal choice for a quick yet nourishing dinner when time is of the essence, without compromising on taste or quality.<\/p>\n<h2>Quick Overview<\/h2>\n<ul>\n<li>Preparation Time: 10 minutes<\/li>\n<li>Cooking Time: 15 minutes<\/li>\n<li>Difficulty: Easy<\/li>\n<li>Serves: 2<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h2>Ingredients<\/h2>\n<ul>\n<li>5.6 oz (160g) wholewheat short pasta (e.g., fusilli, penne)<\/li>\n<li>1 medium courgette (approx. 5.3 oz \/ 150g)<\/li>\n<li>1.1 oz (30g) fresh basil (one bunch)<\/li>\n<li>0.7 oz (20g) blanched almonds<\/li>\n<li>1.1 oz (30g) grated Parmesan cheese<\/li>\n<li>1 small garlic clove<\/li>\n<li>1.4 fl oz (40ml) extra virgin olive oil<\/li>\n<li>5.3 oz (150g) cherry tomatoes<\/li>\n<li>Fine sea salt and black pepper, to taste<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h2>Method<\/h2>\n<ol>\n<li>Bring a large pot of salted water to the boil. Cook the wholewheat pasta according to package instructions, usually for 8-10 minutes, until al dente.<\/li>\n<li>While the pasta cooks, prepare the pesto. Wash the courgette and cut it into rough pieces. Wash the basil and peel the garlic.<\/li>\n<li>In a blender, combine the courgette pieces, basil, almonds, Parmesan cheese, garlic clove, 1 fl oz (30ml) of extra virgin olive oil, a pinch of salt, and a grind of pepper. Blend until you have a smooth and velvety cream.<\/li>\n<li>Wash the cherry tomatoes and cut them in half or quarters, depending on their size.<\/li>\n<li>Drain the pasta, reserving a ladleful of the cooking water. Transfer the pasta to a large bowl, add the courgette pesto and the chopped cherry tomatoes.<\/li>\n<li>Mix well, adding a splash of the pasta cooking water if needed to combine the sauce better and make it creamier. Serve immediately with a drizzle of extra virgin olive oil.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<h2>Serving &amp; Leftovers<\/h2>\n<p>Serve the pasta warm, optionally with an extra sprinkle of Parmesan cheese. Leftovers keep in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 2 days; best consumed cold or at room temperature, as basil pesto can discolour if reheated.<\/p>\n<h2>Nutrition<\/h2>\n<p>Nutritional values are estimates and may vary depending on ingredients and portions.<\/p>\n<h2>One Last Thing<\/h2>\n<p>Preparing a nutritious and flavourful meal in little time can become a rewarding habit. These simple, reliable recipes are designed to fit effortlessly into your weekly routine, offering practical solutions that don&#8217;t sacrifice taste or wellbeing. Integrating dishes like this can simplify dinner management, ensuring a delightful outcome every time.<\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Discover how simple ingredients can create a surprisingly fresh and flavourful meal. This wholewheat pasta with courgette pesto and cherry tomatoes is a delicious choice for any evening.<\/p>","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":1245,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"pmpro_default_level":"","_cloudinary_featured_overwrite":false,"ingredients_html_en_gb":"<div style=\"background:#f9f7f2;padding:25px;border-radius:10px;border:1px solid #e8e4db;font-family:sans-serif\">\n    <h3 style=\"text-align:center;margin-bottom:20px\">Shop ingredients<\/h3>\n    <div style=\"background:#fff;padding:15px;border-radius:5px;border:1px solid #eee\">\n      <div style=\"text-align:center;margin-bottom:15px;border-bottom:1px dashed #ccc;padding-bottom:10px\">\n        <strong style=\"color:#ee1c2e;margin-bottom:10px\">TESCO<\/strong>\n        <div style=\"margin-bottom:8px\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.tesco.com\/groceries\/en-GB\/search?query=wholewheat%20short%20pasta\" target=\"_blank\" style=\"color:#1a1a1a;text-decoration:underline\">Add wholewheat short pasta \u2192<\/a><\/div><div style=\"margin-bottom:8px\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.tesco.com\/groceries\/en-GB\/search?query=courgette\" target=\"_blank\" style=\"color:#1a1a1a;text-decoration:underline\">Add courgette \u2192<\/a><\/div><div style=\"margin-bottom:8px\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.tesco.com\/groceries\/en-GB\/search?query=fresh%20basil\" target=\"_blank\" style=\"color:#1a1a1a;text-decoration:underline\">Add fresh basil \u2192<\/a><\/div>\n      <\/div>\n      <div style=\"text-align:center\">\n        <strong style=\"color:#53334e;margin-bottom:10px\">OCADO<\/strong>\n        <div style=\"margin-bottom:8px\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.ocado.com\/search?q=wholewheat%20short%20pasta\" target=\"_blank\" style=\"color:#1a1a1a;text-decoration:underline\">Add wholewheat short pasta \u2192<\/a><\/div><div style=\"margin-bottom:8px\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.ocado.com\/search?q=courgette\" target=\"_blank\" style=\"color:#1a1a1a;text-decoration:underline\">Add courgette \u2192<\/a><\/div><div style=\"margin-bottom:8px\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.ocado.com\/search?q=fresh%20basil\" target=\"_blank\" style=\"color:#1a1a1a;text-decoration:underline\">Add fresh basil \u2192<\/a><\/div>\n      <\/div>\n      <div style=\"margin-top:15px;border-top:1px solid #eee;padding-top:10px\"><details><summary style=\"font-size:13px;cursor:pointer\">See all ingredients<\/summary><div style=\"margin-top:10px\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.tesco.com\/groceries\/en-GB\/search?query=blanched%20almonds\" target=\"_blank\" style=\"color:#888;text-decoration:none;font-size:13px\">blanched almonds<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.tesco.com\/groceries\/en-GB\/search?query=parmesan%20cheese\" target=\"_blank\" style=\"color:#888;text-decoration:none;font-size:13px\">Parmesan cheese<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.tesco.com\/groceries\/en-GB\/search?query=garlic\" target=\"_blank\" style=\"color:#888;text-decoration:none;font-size:13px\">garlic<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.tesco.com\/groceries\/en-GB\/search?query=extra%20virgin%20olive%20oil\" target=\"_blank\" style=\"color:#888;text-decoration:none;font-size:13px\">extra virgin olive oil<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.tesco.com\/groceries\/en-GB\/search?query=cherry%20tomatoes\" target=\"_blank\" style=\"color:#888;text-decoration:none;font-size:13px\">cherry tomatoes<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.tesco.com\/groceries\/en-GB\/search?query=sea%20salt\" target=\"_blank\" style=\"color:#888;text-decoration:none;font-size:13px\">sea salt<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.tesco.com\/groceries\/en-GB\/search?query=black%20pepper\" target=\"_blank\" style=\"color:#888;text-decoration:none;font-size:13px\">black pepper<\/a><\/div><\/details><\/div>\n    <\/div>\n  <\/div>","footnotes":""},"categories":[7,208],"tags":[8,222,11,223,12,212,230,9,13,18,216,10],"class_list":["post-4387","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-dinner","category-recipes-en","tag-30-minute","tag-emergency-dinner","tag-family-friendly","tag-healthy-focus","tag-no-chaos","tag-premium-vault","tag-processed-weekly-plan","tag-quick-prep","tag-repeatable","tag-short-ingredient-list","tag-summer","tag-weeknight","pmpro-has-access"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/smartkitchen30.com\/it\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4387","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/smartkitchen30.com\/it\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/smartkitchen30.com\/it\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/smartkitchen30.com\/it\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/smartkitchen30.com\/it\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=4387"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/smartkitchen30.com\/it\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4387\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":4409,"href":"https:\/\/smartkitchen30.com\/it\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4387\/revisions\/4409"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/smartkitchen30.com\/it\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/1245"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/smartkitchen30.com\/it\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=4387"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/smartkitchen30.com\/it\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=4387"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/smartkitchen30.com\/it\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=4387"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}