Red Lentil Pasta with Lemon Pesto

Every spring it seems like as the temperatures warm up people start thinking about healthier food choices.  I know I do!  This Red Lentil Pasta with Lemon Pesto is the perfect protein packed spring pasta dish to satisfy those pasta cravings while fitting into a healthy nutritional plan.

This is a sponsored post written by me on behalf of Oil & Vinegar. All opinions are entirely my own.

 

Now I have never tried a veggie pasta made from Red Lentils until Oil & Vinegar shipped me a package in one of their product shipments for recipe development.  The idea of a pasta made from 100% red lentils got me excited to test out.  Not only are lentils a great source of vegetarian protein they are high in fiber too!  This veggie pasta has an impressive 26.5g of protein and 6.5g of fiber per serving!  For someone like me who tracks their macros it makes this pasta the perfect balanced meal of carbs and protein!  Plus it is gluten free so a win win for those of you with gluten sensitivities that LOVE your pasta!

To be honest I have not had a good track record with gluten free or veggie pastas, to me they always taste too mushy or the flavor was off.  As I was cooking this veggie pasta I was sneaking a noodle every now and then to test doneness and I was pleasantly surprised at not only the texture of this pasta but the flavor.  The texture is almost exactly like a regular flour pasta and the flavor is amazing, not too overpowering with the lentils.

I paired the veggie pasta with a pesto that has fresh lemon zest in it to give a little citrus zing to the basil and olive oil base.  Pesto Al Limone is the perfect pasta sauce for light spring dishes.  By using the Oil & Vinegar pasta products I literally got this dish on the table in less than 20 minutes!  The perfect protein packed pasta dish that is super tasty, simple and fast to make.

Adding fresh-shelled sugar snap peas give a bit of crunch and texture to this pasta dish with creamy goat cheese crumbles topping off all this light spring goodness!

This pasta dish is super fresh, light and healthy while packed with protein.  Don’t forget that Oil & Vinegar offers my followers 20% off of their in store or online order, just click here to get to the Oil & Vinegar site and use code SIMPLE20 at checkout!

Enjoy!

Ingredients:

• 1 package  Veggie Pasta
• 3 ounces sugar snap peas (shelled)
• 2 Tbs  Pesto Al Limone
• 2 ounces goat cheese (Crumbled)

Directions:

Cook Veggie Pasta according to directions on package, about 4-6 minutes in boiling and salted water.

While the Pasta is cooking, shell the peas.

Drain pasta reserving ¼ cup of the pasta water.  Toss with the Pesto Al Limone and slowly add reserved cooking water until you get to a sauce consistency you like.

Fold in shelled sugar snap peas and goat cheese.

Spoon pasta mixture into serving bowls and top with additional shelled peas and goat cheese crumbles.

Enjoy!

Pin this Red Lentil Pasta with Lemon Pesto to your favorite Pasta, Vegetarian or Gluten Free Pinterest boards for later!