Creamy Sun Dried Tomato Pesto Pasta With Parmesan and Basil

Make this creamy sun dried tomato pesto pasta in just 15 minutes for a flavorful weeknight dinner! It’s the perfect low effort, high reward meal when you’re craving elevated comfort and classic Italian flavors.

One of our favorite ingredients to make from scratch is pesto. Homemade pesto is so much more flavorful than any store-bought option, and it only takes about 5 minutes to make! Ever since we created our own recipe for sun-dried tomato pesto, we’ve been dying to make a pasta dish using it as a base for the sauce.

After experimenting with different pasta shapes and adjustments to the sauce, we finally perfected a creamy sun dried tomato pesto pasta that’s decadent without being overly heavy. The flavors are bright and fresh with a hint of nuttiness that’s so satisfying it’s hard to stop eating!

Topped with parmesan, fresh basil, and a drizzle of olive oil, it feels like the kind of dish you’d enjoy on a warm spring evening in the Italian countryside. My mouth is watering just thinking about it – and about the prospect of warmer days ahead.

Why We Love This Recipe

Key Ingredients

• Pasta – We love using DeCecco because it’s made with the traditional bronze drawing, slow drying method of authentic Italian pasta. It’s less processed than other brands, and we find it’s not quite as heavy and easier to digest.
• Sun dried tomato pesto – We strongly recommend using homemade pesto for the best flavor and texture. Our sun-dried tomato pesto recipe is ultra creamy yet light and fresh, so it’s the perfect base for a pasta sauce. It only takes about 5 minutes to make with sun-dried tomatoes, parmesan cheese, toasted almonds, fresh basil, and a food processor.
• Fresh lemon juice – The acid in lemon juice makes the flavors of the sun-dried tomato pesto sauce pop! Use freshly squeezed juice from a lemon for the best flavor. The bottled stuff from the store has its place, just not in this pasta.
• Finishing oil – We recommend using a high quality extra virgin olive oil for drizzling over the pasta before serving, like Bertolli (easy to find) or Bona Furtuna (more specialty). This simple ingredient elevates this dish with little effort and takes the flavors from good to great!
• Fresh parmesan cheese and fresh basil – Like the finishing oil, fresh parmesan and basil garnishes take this pasta’s flavors and textures over the top. We first tried this recipe without either and it fell a little flat, so don’t skip out on these.

See the recipe card for full information on ingredients and quantities.

How To Make Creamy Sun Dried Tomato Pesto Pasta

Step 1: Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Add the linguine and boil until al dente according to package directions. Make sure to reserve some pasta water for the sauce.

Step 2: Add the sun dried tomato pesto to a large frying pan over low heat with a half cup of the pasta water. Stir well to combine and let the sauce warm up so that it’s lightly steaming.

Step 3: Stir in the fresh lemon juice.

Step 4: Drain the pasta and add it to the frying pan with the sauce. Toss to combine.

Step 5: Plate the sun-dried tomato pasta with a finishing drizzle of extra virgin olive oil, parmesan shards, and fresh basil leaves. Enjoy immediately!

Serving Suggestions

• Summer date night dinner at home – This easy pasta pairs beautifully with a whipped brie with calabrian chiles appetizer and a rosemary vodka lemonade. 
• Valentine’s Day – Anyone can make this simple recipe. So wow your significant other with a homemade pasta dinner. Take it up notch by adding crispy potatoes with whipped ricotta as a starter and finishing off the night with our Greek yogurt dessert parfait.
• Dinner parties – Having guests over? This pasta can easily be scaled to accommodate a larger group. But make sure to make some baked bruschetta dip to hold your guests over while everyone arrives!

Sun-Dried Tomato Pesto Pasta FAQs