Mason Jar Pesto Pasta Salad (perfect for meal prep)
Servings: 4 (2 cup) mason jars
This Mason Jar Pesto Pasta Salad is perfect for meal prep! Packed with pesto, pasta, vegetables and cheese, they're a delight for lunch.
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Ingredients
- 200-220 grams / ½ lb Short cut pasta of choice (like shells, radiatori, rotini, fusili or farfalle
- ½ cup diced sundried tomatoes in oil drained of oil and diced
- 3/4 cup prepared pesto sauce
- 1 tbsp extra-virgin olive oil
- 1 tbsp red wine vinegar
- ½ tsp kosher salt
- ¼ tsp chili flakes
- 1 red pepper diced
- ½ cup chopped pitted Kalamata olives or whole
- ½ cup chopped artichoke hearts
- 1/3 cup chopped fresh basil
- 1 cup halved baby bocconcini cheese
- ⅓ cup chopped nuts of choice pistachios, almonds or walnuts
- Optional: add 1 cup protein of choice to the salad like butter beans cannellini beans, chopped chicken or cooked Italian sausage.
Instructions
- Cook the pasta to al dente. Drain and rinse with cold water and then add to a medium sized bowl with half of the pesto and gently stir to combine.
- To a large bowl add the pesto, olive oil, red wine vinegar, salt and chili flakes. Whisk together until combined. Add the cooked pasta to the bowl along with the diced sundried tomatoes, diced ed pepper, chopped olives, chopped artichoke hearts, chopped fresh basil, halved baby bocconcini cheese and chopped nuts. Toss to combine everything with the pesto.
- Divide into two mason jars and store in the fridge for up to one day before serving.
- Take out of the fridge for about 10-15 minutes before serving for the best taste and texture! Give the jar a good shake before enjoying as some of the pesto dressing can fall to the bottom of the jar.
Notes
- For a bit more crunch add 1/3 cup diced red onion.
- In the summer months, swap the diced red pepper for juicy cherry tomatoes.
- I love adding some protein to this quick pasta salad to help bulk it out! This is totally optional, but you can add 1 cup of your protein of choice. I love adding butter beans, cannellini beans, chopped chicken, or cooked Italian sausage!
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