{"id":5489,"date":"2026-04-20T16:34:56","date_gmt":"2026-04-20T15:34:56","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/smartkitchen30.com\/?p=5489"},"modified":"2026-04-20T16:34:56","modified_gmt":"2026-04-20T15:34:56","slug":"quick-pesto-pasta-with-cherry-tomatoes-mozzarella","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/smartkitchen30.com\/it\/dinner\/quick-pesto-pasta-with-cherry-tomatoes-mozzarella\/","title":{"rendered":"Quick Pesto Pasta with Cherry Tomatoes &#038; Mozzarella"},"content":{"rendered":"<h1>Quick Pesto, Cherry Tomato &amp; Mozzarella Pasta<\/h1>\n<p>Organising your weekly meals doesn&#8217;t mean sacrificing flavour or freshness. With just 10 minutes of preparation and 15-18 minutes of cooking, this delightful dish fits comfortably within a 30-minute total timeframe, offering a practical and delicious solution for even the busiest evenings. This recipe is designed to become a staple in your repertoire, a complete meal that perfectly balances carbohydrates, vegetables, and protein. Its simplicity and speed make it ideal when time is short but the desire for a home-cooked meal is high. It&#8217;s a prime example of how even minimal planning can transform into a satisfying, stress-free culinary experience.<\/p>\n<h2>Quick Overview<\/h2>\n<ul>\n<li>Preparation Time: 10 minutes<\/li>\n<li>Cooking Time: 15-18 minutes<\/li>\n<li>Difficulty: Easy<\/li>\n<li>Serves: 4<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h2>Ingredients<\/h2>\n<ul>\n<li>11.3 oz (320g) short pasta (e.g., fusilli, penne)<\/li>\n<li>6.3 oz (180g) Genovese pesto (fresh or jarred)<\/li>\n<li>8.8 oz (250g) cherry tomatoes<\/li>\n<li>5.3 oz (150g) fresh mozzarella (fior di latte or bocconcini)<\/li>\n<li>2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil<\/li>\n<li>Fine salt, to taste<\/li>\n<li>Fresh basil leaves for garnish (optional)<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h2>Method<\/h2>\n<ol>\n<li>Bring a large pot of generously salted water to a boil; add the pasta and cook according to package instructions, usually 8-10 minutes, until al dente.<\/li>\n<li>While the pasta cooks, wash the cherry tomatoes and cut them in half or quarters, depending on their size; drain the fresh mozzarella and cut it into 1-2 cm cubes.<\/li>\n<li>In a large bowl, combine the Genovese pesto, extra virgin olive oil, and chopped cherry tomatoes; stir gently to combine the flavours.<\/li>\n<li>Drain the pasta once al dente, reserving a ladleful of the cooking water; immediately transfer the drained pasta to the bowl with the pesto and cherry tomatoes.<\/li>\n<li>Add the cubed mozzarella and a couple of tablespoons of the reserved pasta cooking water, if needed, to create a creamier sauce; mix all the ingredients well until the pasta is uniformly coated.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<h2>Serving &amp; Leftovers<\/h2>\n<p>Serve the pasta immediately, garnishing with fresh basil leaves if desired. This dish is excellent served warm, but it&#8217;s also delicious at room temperature. Any leftovers can be stored in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 1 day. Freezing is not recommended.<\/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>Adopting a structured approach to cooking, even for the simplest dishes, can truly transform your weeknight evenings. Developing a repertoire of reliable and quick recipes means you&#8217;ll always have a delicious solution readily available, free from the burden of last-minute decisions, enhancing spontaneity and allowing more enjoyment around the dinner table.<\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Discover how effortlessly you can prepare a vibrant pasta dish featuring rich pesto, sweet cherry tomatoes, and creamy mozzarella, ideal for a satisfying weeknight meal.<\/p>","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":5370,"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=pasta\" target=\"_blank\" style=\"color:#1a1a1a;text-decoration:underline\">Add pasta \u2192<\/a><\/div><div style=\"margin-bottom:8px\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.tesco.com\/groceries\/en-GB\/search?query=pesto\" target=\"_blank\" style=\"color:#1a1a1a;text-decoration:underline\">Add pesto \u2192<\/a><\/div><div style=\"margin-bottom:8px\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.tesco.com\/groceries\/en-GB\/search?query=cherry%20tomatoes\" target=\"_blank\" style=\"color:#1a1a1a;text-decoration:underline\">Add cherry tomatoes \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=pasta\" target=\"_blank\" style=\"color:#1a1a1a;text-decoration:underline\">Add pasta \u2192<\/a><\/div><div style=\"margin-bottom:8px\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.ocado.com\/search?q=pesto\" target=\"_blank\" style=\"color:#1a1a1a;text-decoration:underline\">Add pesto \u2192<\/a><\/div><div style=\"margin-bottom:8px\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.ocado.com\/search?q=cherry%20tomatoes\" target=\"_blank\" style=\"color:#1a1a1a;text-decoration:underline\">Add cherry tomatoes \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=mozzarella\" target=\"_blank\" style=\"color:#888;text-decoration:none;font-size:13px\">mozzarella<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.tesco.com\/groceries\/en-GB\/search?query=olive%20oil\" target=\"_blank\" style=\"color:#888;text-decoration:none;font-size:13px\">olive oil<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.tesco.com\/groceries\/en-GB\/search?query=salt\" target=\"_blank\" style=\"color:#888;text-decoration:none;font-size:13px\">salt<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.tesco.com\/groceries\/en-GB\/search?query=basil\" target=\"_blank\" style=\"color:#888;text-decoration:none;font-size:13px\">basil<\/a><\/div><\/details><\/div>\n    <\/div>\n  <\/div>","footnotes":""},"categories":[7,208],"tags":[8,222,11,223,12,212,230,9,13,216,10],"class_list":["post-5489","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-summer","tag-weeknight","pmpro-has-access"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/smartkitchen30.com\/it\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5489","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=5489"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/smartkitchen30.com\/it\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5489\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":5515,"href":"https:\/\/smartkitchen30.com\/it\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5489\/revisions\/5515"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/smartkitchen30.com\/it\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/5370"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/smartkitchen30.com\/it\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=5489"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/smartkitchen30.com\/it\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=5489"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/smartkitchen30.com\/it\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=5489"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}