This mushroom pesto pasta is a quick and easy pasta recipe. It’s an earthy, savory pasta dish featuring mushrooms sautéed to a caramelized golden brown color and tossed with a lemony pesto sauce.
This pesto and mushroom pasta is a great week night dinner recipe since it comes together in under 30 minutes. Cooked pasta is tossed with sautéed mushrooms, lemony pesto, olives, salty feta and pine nuts to create a pesto mushroom pasta dish.
I love the earthy, hearty texture of mushrooms in this mushroom and pesto pasta recipe. I used baby button mushrooms but you could substitute any type of firm mushroom you want in this dish. The important step is to sauté them so that they become a lovely, caramelized, brown color.
Most pestos are made with fresh basil. But for this recipe we’re using parsley instead since it’s easy to find in the grocery store. The pesto recipe is a simple combination of parsley, lemon juice, garlic, parmesan cheese and a little olive oil. Just whirl it up in your food processor and it’s ready. And rather than adding the nuts to the pesto, I’ve added them at the end, tossing them into the dish with the olives and feta cheese.
Homemade pesto is so easy to make. I use it all the time in pasta, as a dressing for sandwiches or just to keep a batch on hand in the fridge to use when needed.
Why I’m sharing this recipe
Quick to make: This recipe is ready in under 30 minutes. You’ll have dinner on the table in no time at all.
Delicious: Sautéed mushrooms, lemony garlic pesto, salty feta tossed with pasta makes a tasty flavor combination.
Stores well: This recipe works well both hot or cold. So make a big batch and store the leftovers in the fridge for lunch the next day.
Key recipe ingredients
Pasta: I used rotini but any curly or tubular pasta will work well – like fusilli or penne.
Mushrooms: I used baby button mushrooms for this recipe. Cremini or baby Bella mushrooms would work well in this recipe also.
Pesto: This recipe includes a homemade pesto sauce but store bought would be fine if you have a brand that you really like.
Add ins: I added olives, feta and pine nuts to this recipe for pesto mushroom pasta because I love the salty, briny taste they add to this recipe.
How to make the recipe
Step 1: Make the pesto by combining all the pesto ingredients in a food processor and puree.
Step 2: Bring a large pot of water to a boil and cook the pasta as per the package instructions until al dente. Drain the pasta when ready.
Step 3: While the pasta is cooking, saute sliced mushrooms in a large frying pan until the are caramelized to a golden brown color.
Step 4: Combine drained pasta with pesto, mushrooms, sliced olives, feta and pine nuts. Toss to combine and serve.
Tips for making this recipe
How do I cook the mushrooms a golden brown color? To make this mushroom pesto pasta recipe you want to make sure that you sauté the mushrooms so that they caramelize and turn brown. The secret to this is to add your sliced mushrooms to your sauté pan and cook over medium high heat without stirring for 3 minutes. As they cook, they will release their juices, which will evaporate as it cooks. This way the mushrooms will turn a lovely brown – rather than stay a dull color.
What type of pesto is this? The pesto is a chunky type of pesto – not an oily type of pesto. When adding the pesto, add it to the pasta first, once you’ve drained the pasta. Adding it to the hot pasta will help it melt and cover all the pasta equally. After you’ve added the pesto to the pasta, add all your other ingredients.
I don’t like olives, can I leave them out or swap them for something else? If you don’t like olives you can omit them. Or try adding minced sun dried tomatoes or roasted red peppers instead.
Do I need to reheat the leftovers before serving? This pasta dish works well cold and is great as leftovers, so make a little extra so you can pack it up for lunch the next day.
Why add salt to the pasta water? A heaping tablespoon of kosher salt added to the pasta water just as it starts to boil adds flavor to the pasta. Don’t be scared to salt your pasta water. It won’t make the pasta taste overly salty.
Don’t forget to reserve some of the pasta water before you drain it. Pasta water is a great add in to loosen up the pasta sauce. It has starch that helps emulsify the pasta pesto sauce. Add one or two tablespoons as needed and stir to combine.
FAQ
Yes, store bought pesto will be fine to use. Add in 3 to 4 tablespoons and if you need more to cover all the ingredients, add 1 tablespoon at a time until all the ingredients are lightly coated with pesto.
Store leftovers in air tight container for up to 3 days.
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Nutritional information below is an estimate based on an online nutritional calculator.
PrintMushroom Pesto Pasta
A savory, earthy pasta dish featuring sauteed mushrooms, olives, feta and a fresh easy pesto sauce.
- Prep Time: 10 mins
- Cook Time: 15 mins
- Total Time: 25 minutes
- Yield: 2 to 4 1x
- Category: Pasta
- Cuisine: American
Ingredients
Pasta:
- 8 oz of pasta – I used rotini
- 8 oz of mushrooms – I used white button mushrooms
- 1 tbs olive oil
- 2 cloves of peeled garlic – minced or put through a garlic press.
- 10 to 12 kalamata olives
- 2 oz of feta cheese – diced into cubes
- 1/4 cup pine nuts – toasted
Pesto:
- 1 cup italian parsley
- 1/2 cup grated parmesan
- 1 lemon – juiced – about 2 to 3 tbs
- 3 tbs olive oil
- 2 cloves of garlic
- 8 twists of pepper
Instructions
- Slice mushrooms into thin slices.
- Roughly chop olives and set aside.
- Dice feta and set aside.
- Add parsley, parmesan, lemon juice, olive oil, garlic cloves and black pepper to a food processor and blend until pesto is pureed. I used a small/mini food processor.
- Cook pasta as per box instructions in a large pot of salted water. Reserve a 1/2 cup of pasta water before you drain it.
- In a saute pan, saute mushrooms in one tbs olive oil. Let the mushrooms cook, without stirring, over medium high heat for 3 minutes. Then add minced garlic and stir. Continue cooking mushrooms until they are a golden brown.
- Add pesto to pasta and toss to combine. Add a tablespoon or two of reserved pasta water if pesto feels too thick. The pasta water will help emulsify and loosen up the pesto sauce.
- Add sauteed mushrooms, olives, feta and pine nuts. Toss to combine and serve.
Notes
You want to make sure that you sauté the mushrooms so that they caramelize and turn brown. The secret to this is to add your sliced mushrooms to your sauté pan and cook over medium high heat without stirring for 3 minutes. As they cook, they will release their juices, which will evaporate as it cooks. This way the mushrooms will turn a lovely brown – rather than stay a dull color.
Reserve 1/2 cup of pasta water to use to loosen up the pesto sauce if it feels too thick. Just add a tablespoon or two at a time until you get the desired consistency.
When adding the pesto, add it to the pasta first, once you’ve drained the pasta. Adding it to the hot pasta will help it melt and cover all the pasta equally. After you’ve added the pesto to the pasta, add all your other ingredients and toss to combine.
Don’t forget to salt the pasta water before adding the pasta to cook. This adds flavor and does not make the pasta too salty. Add a heaping tablespoon of kosher salt to the water as it begins to boil.
Nutritional information is an estimate based on an online nutritional calculator.
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 of 4
- Calories: 443
- Sugar: 1.6g
- Sodium: 430mg
- Fat: 25.8g
- Saturated Fat: 8.6g
- Carbohydrates: 36.3g
- Fiber: 1.5g
- Protein: 19.8g
- Cholesterol: 74mg
Sheila
Lovely touch sautéed mushrooms with pasta that has a lemon , garlic pesto.Delicious.
Geraldine
The pesto really makes this dish and the earthy mushrooms too! Thanks for leaving a comment and a rating!
Darlene
This was WONDERFUL!
Geraldine
Thanks so much for letting me know, Darlene!
La Torontoise
Geraldine, I’ve been reading your blog for a while, but work is very hectic and only now could write. I did this pasta recipe tonight and it became an instant hit. Thank you very much!
Have a great weekend!
Geraldine
Thanks so much, La Torontoise! So glad you enjoyed the recipe and thanks for taking the time to let me know – I really appreciate it. Hope you have a wonderful weekend too!
Calie
What a wonderful pasta! My boyfriend loves mushroom and when I cook this dish for him, he can’t stop saying : ” It’s so good, it’s so delicious, babe”. Thank you for you recipe .
Geraldine
Thanks, Calie. So glad you enjoyed it!
Jojo
Hi – this looks so tasty. I really appreciate all of your helpful tips, too.
Thanks
Jojo
Geraldine
Thanks so much, Jojo. Hope you enjoy it if you make it!