Roasted Beet & Goat Cheese Pesto Pasta Salad
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Roasted beets, goat cheese and spinach pesto are tossed together in this deliciously easy vegetarian pasta salad recipe. The perfect side dish for a BBQ!
Let’s just take a minute to talk about how awesome pasta is.
Spaghetti and meatballs, stuffed shells, lasagna, manicotti, ravioli, macaroni and cheese, pasta salad, no matter what your favorite is, let’s be honest, they’re all delicious!
Now with easily available gluten free pastas, everyone can enjoy their favorite! And speaking of favorites, this my friends, is my new favorite pasta salad!
Filled with fresh and healthy ingredients, you can’t go wrong bringing this pasta salad to a summer BBQ.
Memorial Day is right around the corner (yay for 3 day weekends!) which means lots of time hanging outside, sipping cold beverages and of course, BBQ’s, in which this salad would be perfect for!
Pesto Pasta Salad Ingredients
- 3 medium beets (peeled and quartered)
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- 1 tbsp balsamic vinegar
- ½ red onion (diced)
- 1 cup uncooked pasta (I recommend macaroni, penne or small shells)
- ¼ cup sun dried tomatoes (chopped)
- ¼ cup fresh basil (chopped)
- 1 cup spinach pesto (click link for homemade recipe)
- ¼ cup goat cheese (crumbled)
Pesto Pasta Salad Instructions
Preheat the oven to 450°F.
Place the beets in a “foil basket” with the olive oil and balsamic vinegar.
Add the diced red onion, then wrap the foil around the beets and place in the oven for 45-60 minutes.
Remove from the oven, open the foil and allow the beets to cool 10-15 minutes.
Cook the pasta according to package directions.
Drain the cooked pasta, place in a large mixing bowl then add the sun dried tomatoes and basil. Chop the roasted beets, then add the beets and onions.
Add the spinach pesto.
Mix well then place in the refrigerator to chill for one hour.
Add the goat cheese before serving.
OMG, the flavors in this salad are so amazing! The roasted beets, the spinach pesto, the goat cheese, yes, yes and yes!
Here we are again, on my train of beet obsession, just riding alongside my beet hummus, chilled beet soup and caramelized beet and feta cheese salad.
They’re so good for you and so tasty, I just can’t get enough!
Roasted Beet & Goat Cheese Pesto Pasta Salad
Ingredients
- 3 beets, peeled and quartered
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- 1 tbsp balsamic vinegar
- ½ cup red onion, diced
- 1 cup uncooked pasta, I recommend macaroni, penne or small shells
- ¼ cup sun dried tomatoes, chopped
- ¼ cup fresh basil, chopped
- 1 cup spinach pesto
- ¼ cup goat cheese, crumbled
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 450°F.
- Place the beets in a “foil basket” with the olive oil and balsamic vinegar.
- Add the diced red onion, then wrap the foil around the beets and place in the oven for 45-60 minutes.
- Remove from the oven, open the foil and allow the beets to cool 10-15 minutes.
- Cook the pasta according to package directions.
- Drain the cooked pasta, place in a large mixing bowl then add the sun dried tomatoes and basil. Chop the roasted beets, then add the beets and onions.
- Add the spinach pesto.
- Mix well then place in the refrigerator to chill for one hour.
- Add the goat cheese before serving.
Nutrition Facts
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2 Comments on “Roasted Beet & Goat Cheese Pesto Pasta Salad”
This is the best pasta salad I have ever had. It’s good warm too! In love with this recipe. Only tweak I do is basil pesto instead of spinach, and cilantro instead of basil.
Hello Little Leopard,
I just discovered your recipes and love them. Great blog, too! Thanks for all your good shares!
One thing, though. I used to cook beets with foil, too, but I have since learned to avoid aluminum foil altogether. It’s not healthy…aluminum can lead to Alzheimers.
The good news is, all the beet recipes where you use foil (or any others…I haven’t looked at all your recipes), will turn out just as great if you bake the beats in a covered casserole dish (without water). Just put the beets and other ingredients in the casserole and bake away. I’ve done this many times and it works like a charm!
Cheers! Jan