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Jamie's sweet pea pesto pasta recipe

Jamie's sweet pea pesto pasta recipe

16 ratings

In partnership with Jamie Oliver

Jamie says: "Frozen peas are so handy for rustling up a quick meal, and most of us have a bag in the freezer. They're a good source of vitamin C and fibre and 80g counts as one of your 5-a-day. The freezer staple can be used in lots of different ways, but this delicious Pea pesto pasta is one of my absolute favourites. It comes together in under 15 minutes, it’s full of light, summery flavours and is a super-flexible recipe, so you can switch it up with different pasta shapes, veg, herbs, cheese and nuts. This dish is healthy, quick and packed with flavour – a proper family favourite." See method

  • Serves 4
  • Takes 15 mins
  • 532 calories / serving
  • Vegetarian

Ingredients

  • 300g frozen peas
  • 300g dried farfalle pasta
  • 50g sunflower seeds
  • ½ a bunch of basil (15g)
  • ½ a clove of garlic
  • 50g mature cheddar cheese
  • extra virgin olive oil
  • 1 lemon
  • 1 head of broccoli (320g)

Each serving contains

  • Energy

    2240kj
    532kcal
    27%
  • Fat

    20g 28%
  • Saturates

    5g 26%
  • Sugars

    5g 6%
  • Salt

    0.3g 5%

of the reference intake
Carbohydrate 70.5g Protein 23g Fibre 7.3g

Method

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  1. Bring a pan of salted water to the boil. Place the peas in a colander or sieve and sit it on top of the pan for 2 minutes until the peas have defrosted. Remove the sieve, then add the pasta to the water and cook according to the packet instructions. 
  2. Meanwhile, add the sunflower seeds, basil (stalks and all) and peeled garlic clove to a food processor and blitz until fine. Grate in the cheese, add half of the defrosted peas and pulse again, until combined.
  3. Add 2 tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil, a good grating of lemon zest and a good squeeze of juice and pulse again – you can go as smooth or rustic as you like. Season to perfection with sea salt and black pepper. 
  4. Five minutes before the end of the pasta cooking time, roughly chop the broccoli, stalk and all, and drop into the pan. Drain the pasta and broccoli, reserving a little of the starchy cooking water and stir through the pea pesto, adding a splash of the cooking water and remaining peas. Drizzle with a little extra virgin olive oil before serving, if you like.

Tip: You can use this peasto in loads of ways: Try folding it through mashed potato to pack more veg into kids’ mealtimes; mix it with cream cheese to make a tasty sandwich filling; use it to top grilled fish (the frozen white fish fillets are great); swirl it through a mozzarella and tomato salad; or simply use it to top bruschetta. For summer dinner ideas, serve the pasta alongside a roast chicken and a big green salad. It will keep, covered, in the fridge for up to three days. (The top might discolour slightly, but just give it a stir and the vibrant green will come back.)

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