Consider dinner plans sorted thanks to this new weeknight-friendly pasta with pesto-seasoned crispy baked tofu and veggies! Made with simple methods in under an hour, it’s the perfect combination of comfort, ease, nourishment, and FLAVOR.
Just 7 ingredients required for this crowd-pleasing, plant-based meal. Let us show you how it’s done!
First came the pesto tofu and now come the pesto tofu BOWLS! But instead of the tofu cooking on its own, it now has some friends in the form of cherry tomatoes and shallots.
When roasted, the veggies become sweet and tender and the tofu becomes golden brown with crispy edges.
Toss it all with your favorite pasta plus vegan parmesan and pesto, and you’ve got a balanced, low-effort, super-flavorful meal!
We hope you LOVE this tofu pesto pasta bowl! It’s:
Savory
Naturally sweet
Herby
Quick & easy
Comforting
& Perfect for weeknights!
It’s a meal on its own but is also delicious served with our BEST Vegan Garlic Bread, Sautéed Kale with Lemon, Tahini & Hemp Seeds, or Simple Green Salad with Lemon Vinaigrette.
More Flavorful Tofu Recipes
- Easy Vegan Stuffed Shells
- Crispy Baked Tofu Nuggets
- Easy Tofu Pad Thai
- Vegan Palak Paneer with Curried Tofu
If you try this recipe, let us know! Leave a comment, rate it, and don’t forget to tag a photo @minimalistbaker on Instagram. Cheers, friends!
Easy Pesto Pasta Bowls with Crispy Tofu & Veggies
Ingredients
PASTA
- 4 cups cherry tomatoes, whole
- 1 ½ cups sliced shallots (~4 medium shallots // or sub red onion)
- 2 Tbsp avocado or olive oil
- 1/2 tsp sea salt
- 12 oz. dry pasta of choice (gluten-free as needed // we like Jovial Fusilli)
- 3 Tbsp vegan pesto (or store-bought*)
- 1 Tbsp vegan parmesan cheese (optional // or sub store-bought)
FOR SERVING
- 1 batch Crispy Baked Pesto Tofu
- Vegan Parmesan Cheese (optional // or sub store-bought)
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 425 degrees F (218 C).
- Add whole cherry tomatoes and sliced shallots to a bare baking sheet, then add the oil and salt and toss to evenly coat. If you haven't already made the crispy pesto tofu, prepare it now using this recipe, as it will cook at the same temperature and time as the veggies!
- Bake veggies and tofu for 35 minutes, tossing the tofu at the 20-minute mark. The shallots should be softened and some of the tomatoes beginning to split.
- While the veggies and tofu are in the oven, bring a large pot of water to a boil and cook your pasta of choice according to package directions. Drain cooked pasta and return to the pot with heat off. Add pesto and vegan parmesan (optional) and stir to combine.
- When the tomatoes and shallots are done, add them directly to the pot of pasta and mix well to break down some of the tomatoes and get everything nice and glossy. Serve topped with crispy pesto tofu and more vegan parmesan (optional).
- Leftovers keep in the refrigerator for 2-3 days. Not freezer friendly.
Video
Notes
*Nutrition information is a rough estimate calculated with Le Grand Garden Pesto and Jovial Brown Rice Fusilli, and without optional ingredients.
Annie says
So wonderful to have ideas for tofu that have different flavor profiles and textures! I usually make a lot of Asian- inspired recipes with tofu and this was a great mix-up. Would love more recipes like this!
So glad you enjoy, Annie! Thanks so much for the feedback. xo
Anita says
Never posted on recipe sites before but I had to for this. So delicious! Followed the recipe steps exactly – used roma tomatoes, red onion, TJ red lentil sedanini, and TJ vegan pesto. Chef’s kiss.
Only thing is, and I think this is because of the pasta I used, it could maybe benefit from being a bit more saucy. Next time I may leave in a bit more of the pasta water.
We’re so glad you enjoyed it, Anita! Thank you for taking the time to leave a review! xo
Mira says
I love this recipe so much!! I’m not a big pasta eater, but I’ve made this twice now and I’m a huge fan of it. It’s great for my meal prep, and I’ve gotten to use the cherry tomatoes in my garden for a lovely little dish. This and the tofu are definitely going to be regulars for me now, thank you!!
Amazing! We’re so glad you’re enjoying this recipe, Mira. Thank you for sharing! xo
Asha says
This was really good! I did everything except swapped the parmesan for lactose-free feta, as that’s what I had on hand. The tofu came out nice and crispy. Overall, delish! Can’t wait for leftovers for tomorrow’s lunch. :)
We’re so glad you enjoyed it, Asha. Thank you for the lovely review and for sharing your modifications! xo
Violet B. says
AHHH this was amazing! My notes:
– I used a heritage whole wheat pasta, around 10 oz and it was perfect!
– the pesto I used your recipe for, although I dialed down the oil just a tad AND I added around 1 cup of baby spinach just to get some extra veggie power- it was absolutely delicious, and I couldn’t taste the spinach at all!
– I didn’t use the tomatoes/onions; instead, I roasted some cauliflower until it was crispy and delicious and sprinkled it on top along with a dusting of nutritional yeast- DIVINE
All in all, 100% recommend to those on the fence! Extremely satisfying.
Love it! That spinach addition is brilliant. Thanks for the great review, Violet!
Jeweliette says
I made this last night and it truly was quick, easy and so yummy! I added peas to it for more veggies and I didn’t have Parmesan cheese so I added vegan feta and it was really good!
Amazing! Thanks so much for the lovely review and for sharing your modifications, Jeweliette!
Antoinette P says
This was amazing! The entire family loved it!
Woohoo! Thanks so much for the great review, Antoinette!
Becky T says
I made this tonight and it was yummm! I used your Vegan Pesto because I like to keep oil to a minimum. I happened to see High Protein Extra Firm Tofu at Whole Foods when I went to get the basil for the pesto. I had some firm tofu pressing in the fridge but I’m glad I got to try the Crispy Baked Pesto Tofu recipe as written first. The tofu crumbles were crispy with a texture reminiscent of karaage chicken. For the bowls, I used high protein chickpea rotini pasta and added some broccoli to the tomatoes and red onion in the last 15 minutes of bake time. Instead of 2T of oil, I used a couple sprays of garlic-infused olive oil spray on the veggies (also for the tofu). It turned out great! The whole family loved it.
Amazing! Thanks so much for the lovely review and for sharing your modifications, Becky!
Lizzie says
In a word, delicious. I skipped pressing the tofu, so I just cooked it for a little longer until it was crispy. Easy, tasty, and felt a little luxurious on a weeknight. Not even going to peek at the calorie content because it would ruin my pasta high. Worth it. Thanks, Dana!
We’re so glad you enjoyed it, Lizzie. Thanks so much for the lovely review! xo
Kirilly says
I love your website and have been following and cooking your recipes for many years. One thing I have always appreciated is the fact that you include metric conversions for your recipes, which I find extremely helpful as that is what I use. Over the past couple of months you have stopped including the metric conversions for a lot of your Tbsp measures and some of your liquid ingredients which you used to always have (eg. in this recipe, the olive oil, pesto, and vegan parmesan). Now when switching between US customary and metric, all these measures stay as US customary and don’t convert to the metric g / ml. I really miss this inclusion in your recipes and was wondering if there is any chance you could bring it back? Thank you!
Hi Kirilly, thanks so much for bringing this to our attention! Another reader had mentioned tablespoons are still used outside the US, so we had switched to using tablespoons for metrics as well. Would you mind clarifying whether there are any instances when tablespoon measurements are helpful? Or is it always preferable to use g/ml?
Kirilly says
Hi, Thank you so much for your reply. I would say it is always preferable to use g/ml because if there is an ingredient that may be easier to measure by simply using a Tbsp, it is easy to see that on the US customary tab. In my opinion it seems kind of redundant having the option to switch to metric conversion if the measurements just stay the same. By including g/ml for all ingredients it means that both measurement options (Tbsp and g/ml) are given so whatever system people use or prefer, they will have the info they need. I hope that makes sense!
Thanks so much for the follow up! Super helpful and 100% makes sense 🙂