This picnic-perfect pesto pasta salad recipe is full of fresh, enchanting summer flavors! Sweet corn, golden cherry tomatoes, chopped olives, mozzarella pearls and a creamy, light pesto sauce make this pasta salad one of my favorite summer picnic side dishes!
The pasta and corn take only 10 minutes to boil, and your other ingredients take only 10 minutes to prepare! With just a little bit of time for cooling, the entire recipe takes only 30 minutes!
I don’t know about you, but I don’t like eating off my lap at picnics… or any time, really. I also don’t like the mess of disposable plates.
I’d rather serve snacks in a way that’s simple for my guests, that makes as little mess as possible, so I thought I’d serve this pesto pasta salad in pretty jars with lovely fabric tops at my Labor Day picnic this year. They went so nicely with the little dill chicken salad sandwiches that I made!
My picnic was marigold-themed, so I tied my sandwiches with white and gold string, used the brightest corn and cherry tomatoes for my pesto salad, found the sunniest yellow fabric for my jar tops and tried to make everything nice and golden.
How to Make This Pasta Salad – Step by Step
1. Boil 16 oz. of Rotelle pasta in 3 quarts of water for 10 minutes, strain and run under cold water till cool. About 30 seconds. Pour into a large mixing bowl and stir in 1 tbsp. of olive oil to prevent the pasta from sticking to itself as it cools further. Set aside.
2. Add more water to your pot (enough to cover 3 ears of corn) and bring to a boil. While the water heats, make your pesto sauce. In a food processor, add 1 cup of packed basil leaves, 3 tbsp. olive oil, 2 tbsp. pine nuts (or pepitas) and 4 tbsp. freshly grated parmesan. Process until very well combined.
3. In a mixing bowl or measuring cup, combine pesto with ¾ cup mayonnaise, ¾ cup sour cream, and 4 tbsp. white balsamic vinegar and stir. Set aside.
4. When your pot is boiling, add the corn. Boil for 5-7 minutes. When finished, place corn in cold water to cool it down for about 5 minutes.
5. While your corn boils, chop 1 cup of yellow cherry tomatoes in half. Set aside.
6. Chop 1 cup of olives into bite size pieces. Set aside.
7. Slice your cooled corn carefully down the sides of the husks.
8. First, mix the pesto sauce with another 3 tbsp. of freshly grated parmesan into the pasta thoroughly. Then, mix in your olives, corn and 1 cup of mozzarella pearls. Finally, gently mix in your cherry tomatoes. Sprinkle with salt and pepper to taste and serve.
Common Questions
Yes. In fact, this recipe should only be served cold. The pesto sauce is made with sour cream and mayo to make it extra creamy, and you don’t want to heat that up.
If stored in a container with a lid, it will stay fresh for at least a week if refrigerated. Although you’ll notice the “tangy-ness” will diminish a bit after about 2 days. To brighten it back up again, simply mix another ½ cup of mayo with 1-2 tbsp. of white balsamic vinegar, and stir it into the pasta before serving.
You can easily serve 10 people with this recipe, so for smaller groups, cut the recipe in half.
A Few Tips
1. Don’t use store-bought pesto for this recipe.
The loveliness of this recipe is in the simplicity and freshness of the ingredients, and everyone knows, fresh basil is one of the more wonderful summer flavors of all. Pesto is so simple to make, and if you make it just once, I promise, you’ll never use store-bought pesto again when you taste what you’ve been missing.
2. Go for the fancy olives.
Again, in simple recipes like this, quality is key. Go to the fancy olive section of your food store, and choose the nicest ones you can find. It will make all the difference.
How To Make Pretty Fabric-Top Mason Jars
1. Carefully fill 10 8 oz. jars with pasta salad.
2. If you don’t want to fuss with jar tops (which often tend to go missing at picnics) place tin foil on the tops instead.
3. Cut squares from fabric that are just big enough to cover the tops.
4. Place a rubber band around the fabric to hold it easily to the jar while you tie a little bow around it with baker’s string. Remove the rubber band, and trim the corners off of the fabric.
Help Yourself to More Picnic Inspiration!
- The Prettiest Picnic in the Park
- Spicy Sriracha Egg Salad with Avocado Mayo
- Strawberry Rhubarb & Vanilla Cheesecake Mousse Cups
- Easy Rotisserie Chicken Salad with Dill
- The Prettiest Picnic in the Park
For more inspiration, subscribe to my newsletter, follow me on Instagram, on Pinterest, tiktok and Facebook! And if you ever make any of my tasty drinks or treats, take a picture and tag me. I want to see!
Picnic Perfect Pesto Pasta Salad
Equipment
- large mixing bowl
- large pot
- food processor
- mixing spoon
- cutting board
- sharp knife
Ingredients
- 16 oz.
Rotelle pasta
- 4 tbsp. olive oil
- 1 cup fresh basil leaves – packed
- 2 tbsp. pine nuts – or pepitas (pumpkin seeds)
- 7 tbsp. parmesan cheese – freshly grated
¾
cup mayonnaise¾
cup sour cream- 4 tbsp. white balsamic vinegar
- 1 cup mozzarella pearls
- 1 cup yellow cherry tomatoes – sliced
- 3 ears corn – shucked
- 1 cup olives – fancy
Instructions
- Boil 16 oz. of Rotelle pasta in 3 quarts of water for 10 minutes, strain and run under cold water till cool. About 30 seconds. Pour into a large mixing bowl and stir in 1 tbsp. of olive oil to prevent the pasta from sticking to itself as it cools further. Set aside.
- Add more water to your pot (enough to cover 3 ears of corn) and bring to a boil. While the water heats, make your pesto sauce. In a food processor, add 1 cup of packed basil leaves, 3 tbsp. olive oil, 2 tbsp. pine nuts (or pepitas) and 4 tbsp. fresh grated parmesan. Process until very well combined.
- In a mixing bowl or measuring cup, combine pesto with ¾ cup mayonnaise, ¾ cup sour cream, and 4 tbsp. white balsamic vinegar and stir. Set aside.
- When your pot is boiling, add the corn. Boil for 5-7 minutes. When finished, place corn in cold water to cool it down for about 5 minutes.
- While your corn boils, chop 1 cup of yellow cherry tomatoes in half, chop 1 cup of olives into bite size pieces, and slice your cooled corn carefully down the sides of the husks.
- First, mix the pesto sauce with another 3 tbsp. of freshly grated parmesan into the pasta thoroughly. Then, mix in your olives, corn and 1 cup of mozzarella pearls. Finally, gently mix in your cherry tomatoes. Sprinkle with salt and pepper to taste and serve.
TxRN
Wow, you never disappoint or fail to amaze 🤩 this looks gorgeous and portable too. Thank you lovely Genevieve 😊
Genevieve Morrison
Awww! Thank you so much!