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Pesto Pasta with Goat Cheese

Pesto pasta with goat cheese and sweet peas combines a classic basil pesto with spaghetti, sour and salty aged cheese and sweet green peas.

This super quick and easy dinner takes well under 30 minutes, even if you make homemade pesto.

Pesto pasta (spaghetti) with goat cheese and peas on a fork.

Pesto Spaghetti with Peas and Goat Cheese

Pesto pasta is a well-trodden path when it comes to cooking a quick dinner.

I add a little extra to mine in the form of some hard goat cheese and sweet peas.

I love the goat cheese and peas combination. The acidic salty flavour alongside the sweet explosions of peas is just wonderful as far as I am concerned.

It’s a combination that I also use in my deep fried goat cheese and pea puree recipe. 

I reckon the first time I had pesto spaghetti was as a student.

It, of course, consisted of pouring a jar of the cheapest pesto I could find into a bowl of the cheapest and probably, most overcooked pasta I could muster.

It also features another food crush of mine, pasta with peas, whether it is my pea pesto pasta or my prawn and pea pasta, I love the combination!

Close-up pesto pasta with aged goat cheese and peas served with garlic bread.

Frequently Asked Questions

Do I have to make my own pesto?

No, if you want to use store-bought pesto feel free, obviously the better the pesto you use, the better this dish is.

Can I use a different type of pesto?

Yes absolutely, I have mentioned a peas pesto above, although that might be pea overload in this recipe.

But I also have a rocket pesto that I use as a sauce base for this pesto pizza and wild garlic pesto in another pasta recipe.

This classic pesto alla Trapanese uses, raisins, sun-dried tomatoes and almonds, it is to die for and would work really well with the goat cheese in this recipe.

What is aged goat cheese?

Most people associate goat cheese with a young soft goat “chevre”, but it also makes a wonderful hard cheese when aged.

I love the stuff and it has featured before in my pickled peach and goat cheese salad.

It is fairly readily available in the UK, Tesco have a very good cave-aged goat cheese which I have used here and Asda have a rather tasty goat cheese Gouda which have tested.

Overhead pesto pasta with aged goat cheese and peas served with garlic bread.

Serving Suggestions

Your biggest choice to make with the recipe is pasta selection.

I’ve chosen to make this a pesto spaghetti with goat cheese, but this is a very versatile recipe nad you can get away with most pasta types.

The only thing I would avoid is tubes like penne or rigatoni. Apart from that, knock yourself out, everything from tagliatelle to the less well-known, trofie and casarecce pasta.

When it comes to sides, I’m firmly on team garlic bread, you could even add cheesy garlic bread.

Pesto pasta with aged goat cheese and peas served with garlic bread.

Equipment Used

I only name-check brands of equipment if I think that they make a material difference to a recipe. But, if you have any questions feel free to ask them in the comments section below the recipe.

  • 20cm or 8″ saucepan.
  • Small frying pan to toast the pine nuts.
  • Pestle and mortar and or mini blender if you are making pesto.
  • Sieve or colander.
  • Stirring and serving spoons or kitchen tongs.
  • Weighing scales and or measuring cups and spoons.
Pesto pasta (spaghetti) with peas, goats cheese and pine nuts.
Yield: 2 Servings

Pesto Pasta Recipe with Goat Cheese and Peas

Prep Time: 5 minutes
Cook Time: 15 minutes
Total Time: 20 minutes

This pesto spaghetti recipe is a super quick and easy pasta meal, my version adds sweet peas and some aged sour and salty goat cheese to a classic recipe.

Ingredients

  • 175g (6oz) Spaghetti
  • 125g Basil Pesto (See Recipe Below)
  • 100g (1 Cup) Firm Aged Goats Cheese
  • 25g (3 Tbsp) Pine nuts
  • 100g (¾ Cup) Peas
  • Salt for Boiling Pasta

For Homemade Pesto:

  • 20g (2 Tbsp) Pine Nuts
  • 25g (¾-1 Cup) Basil Leaves
  • 15g (3 Tbsp) Parmesan Cheese
  • 2 Cloves Garlic
  • 50ml (3 Tbsp + 1 Tsp) Olive Oil

Instructions

  1. Bring a 20cm or 8" saucepan of generously salted water to a boil (I use 1½ teaspoons in a pan this size), use this to cook your spaghetti as per the instructions. This should take around 8-10 minutes.
  2. Defrost the peas by running them under cold water in a sieve for 4-5 minutes.
  3. Whilst the pasta is cooking toast the pine nuts in a small frying pan.
  4. Crumble the goat cheese.
  5. 1 minute before the pasta is ready to come out of the pan add the defrosted peas.
  6. When your pasta is cooked al dente, drain reserving a little (75ml or ⅓ Cup) of the cooking liquid.
  7. Return the pasta to the cooking pan over a low-medium heat and mix in the pesto, two-thirds of the goat cheese, and half of the pine nuts and mix with enough of the cooking liquid to make a nice "sauce".
  8. Serve and sprinkle with the remaining goat cheese and pine nuts.

Homemade Pesto:

  1. If you are making your own pesto, toast the pine nuts in a dry frying pan.
  2. Transfer to a blender, add the remaining ingredients and blitz until an appropriate texture is achieved. I like to pound my pesto in a pestle and mortar after I have blended it in order to really get the oils flowing.

Nutrition Information:

Yield:

2

Serving Size:

1

Amount Per Serving: Calories: 972Total Fat: 42gSaturated Fat: 12gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 26gCholesterol: 23mgSodium: 1130mgCarbohydrates: 113gFiber: 8gSugar: 10gProtein: 36g

Calorific details are provided by a third-party application and are to be used as indicative figures only.

Did you make this recipe?

If you made this recipe, I'd love to see what you did and what I can do better, share a picture with me on Instagram and tag me @krumplibrian and tell me how it went!

Jagruti

Friday 8th of September 2017

Goats cheese is so tasty and irresistible.your spaghetti with Peas and goats cheese is looking delicious.

Brian Jones

Monday 11th of September 2017

Thanks Jagruti, this is so simple but really tasty.

Kavey Favelle

Friday 11th of August 2017

I adore goats cheese, and I particularly like it with peas, as their sweetness balances so nicely with the goats cheese flavours. Your recipe looks so light, colourful and delicious.

Brian Jones

Friday 11th of August 2017

It is a combination I have used a couple of times before and one I love!

Linda @ With A Blast

Friday 11th of August 2017

My family would love this Pesto Spaghetti for dinner !

Brian Jones

Friday 11th of August 2017

It is so simple to make too!

Jillian

Friday 11th of August 2017

I love pesto and I love how easy this looks!

Brian Jones

Friday 11th of August 2017

Simple and tasty always good!

sara | belly rumbles

Friday 11th of August 2017

I hate to say this, I am one of those people running away from this recipe. Hmm hang on, why run away when I could easily replace with a labne. I love everything else about this recipe! Especially the pine nuts, oh heaven.

Brian Jones

Friday 11th of August 2017

I knew I would find someone who doesn't like goats cheese ;) Love the sound of the substitute though!

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