At our house, pasta is a regular staple, especially for weeknight meals. It’s fast, healthy, budget-friendly, and can be served in different ways on different days, whether topped with a hearty bolognese or tossed with veggies for Meatless Monday. And it makes everyone at my table happy (with two kids with two very different sets of opinions, that’s no easy feat!).
Even better, tonight’s pasta can be repurposed for tomorrow’s lunch boxes. Now that school is in full swing for us, a quick dinner that rolls right into quick lunch boxes is nothing short of a weekday miracle. Recently, I’ve been packing cheese tortellini as a lunch box main course. It’s good warm or cold and keeps bellies full and energy up all afternoon.
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You can buy fresh tortellini, but I usually stock frozen. I like to keep frozen pasta on reserve in my freezer because it comes to the rescue when sports practices and music lessons threaten to wreck family dinner. Drop it into a pot of boiling water and it cooks up in less than five minutes.
No matter what the shape of pasta, pesto is one of my favorite toppings. I think I could probably eat plain pesto by the spoonful. (Is that weird?) Basil pesto is all well and good, but I also like to use greens I tend to have on hand, like spinach and kale. It blends up into a beautiful bright green color.
A batch of this Spinach-Kale Pesto is more than enough to cover a bag of frozen tortellini (or a package of fresh). Stash any leftover pesto in the fridge and spread it on sandwiches or pizza crusts. Or sneak it by the spoonful.
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Lunchbox Pesto Tortellini
Ingredients
- 1 bag frozen cheese tortellini
- 1/4 to 1/3 cup olive oil
- 2 cups packed fresh baby spinach
- 1 cup packed fresh baby kale
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1 garlic clove
- 1/4 cup walnuts
- 1/2 cup parmesan cheese, plus more for topping
Instructions
- Cook tortellini according to package directions. Drain and toss with 1/2 teaspoon olive oil. Set aside.
- Place spinach, kale, salt, garlic, walnuts, and parmesan cheese in a blender or food processor.
- With motor running, slowly drizzle in olive oil until you reach the desired consistency (you may not use all of the olive oil).
- Toss cooked tortellini with a heaping spoonful or two of the pesto (as much as you like).
- Serve warm or cold, with additional parmesan cheese.
- Pack up leftover pesto tortellini in airtight containers for lunch boxes. (Be sure to use a cold pack in lunch boxes.)
- Store leftover pesto in an airtight container and refrigerate if using within the next week. Otherwise, place in freezer.
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Seems like a lot of oil. Is all that grease necessary? Is there any non-fat alternative for this recipe? I find my children require more calorie control than I can get by managing starches and sugars only. These days fats seem to be bloating the calorie count of just about everything. When did we transition from loathing fats to loving fatty ingredients?
MJ–Olive oil is a heart-healthy fat and is a great addition to the diet. This recipes makes five or more servings, so each person will get about one tablespoon of olive oil, which is very reasonable. That being said, you could cut down on the olive oil and sub in some chicken broth.
I’m with you. I could eat pesto by the spoonful, too 🙂 Love this for not only leftover lunches for kids, but mom too!!
Yep! My husband has some in HIS lunch box today! 🙂
Yum, this looks delicious! And here I was, feeling sheepish about buying two pounds of Parmesan cheese with my new Costco membership. Good timing. I think my kids will love this, but I will try the pesto over whole wheat pasta instead of the tortellini. Thank you!
Terita–Glad you have a reason for all that cheese now! 🙂 My goal was to find whole wheat tortellini but no dice!
Can I omit the walnuts in this pesto recipe? My daughter has nut allergies. Is there a big difference in the taste without the walnuts?
Maricel–You can certainly omit the walnuts. I haven’t tasted it without but I’m sure it would still be good!
Great! Thank you! Cant wait to try it.
Hi, looks great! Just wondering what the number of serving is for this recipe. What is the quantity on one bag of tortellini. Can this recipe feed a family of four?
Thanks!
Hi Lisa–Just depends on the quantity of tortellini you buy. Size of packages vary. The bag I usually buy holds 5 servings (though my husband eats more like 2 servings and my younger son probably less than 1 serving). But this definitely makes enough pesto to feed four. Hope you enjoy it!
Super thanks!. Making it tonight!
I made this last night and had it in my lunch box today. It was amazing! Thanks for the recipe!
I really wish I could find whole wheat filled pastas!! But this looks *so* good!
Joani–I’ve never found it either! 🙁 But this pesto works great on all kinds of pasta, so try it on some whole wheat bow ties or spaghetti.