Miso Parsley Pesto Noodle and Sausage Bowls with Edamame
Spice up your pasta with this deliciously different nut-free miso parsley pesto with sausage and edamame. The savory, earthy miso paste mixes so well with fresh parsley, olive oil, garlic and lemon juice to combine into the perfect pesto for this recipe. Add yummy bites of sausage and edamame to the mix and you have the perfect pasta dish.
Inspiration and recipe notes
Time for a spiced up pasta dish! I don’t eat pasta very often – but when I do, I have to make it extra fabulous. This recipe is, in my opinion, just that.
I love a great pesto with pasta and this pesto is extra special. It’s nut free and has deliciously salty and savory miso paste in it. I don’t hate nut-free pesto, but since most pestos are made with pine nuts and Eli is allergic to those, I always try to make fun varieties of pestos without nuts. And this recipe is Eli-approved taste-wise, too!
Enter the miso parsley pesto. I honestly could just eat spoonfuls of this it is so good. I love miso paste – it is very thick, salty, and savory and this combo makes it a great texture to sub in for any nut. It perfectly pairs with the fresh parsley to make a great bright green pesto. You might not ever want to make another pine nut pesto after this one.
I also added fully cooked Italian sausage to this recipe for a bit of protein and extra bite to the pasta. It pairs well with the savory, earthy flavor of the miso. The edamame beans also compliment the miso with more Asian-inspired flavors, and also add a crunch and nice bright green color.
Another great thing about this recipe is that it is super easy to make. Start off with cooking the pasta first and making the pesto while it cooks. After the pasta is done just add the sausage and edamame, cook through and mix a bit, then add the pesto. That’s it, in a nutshell! Easy, quick, flavorful and delicious, and great for leftovers too.
A few notes about this recipe. First, I used penne pasta but feel free to use whatever you have on hand. Make sure to cook the pasta al dente, too. This is extra important because you will cook the past a bit more with the sausage and edamame, and you don’t want the pasta to be too soft and mushy before you even add those additional ingredients.
You can also use any sausage you like, even if it isn’t precooked. I find the 4 pack pre-cooked sausages delicious and easy to just cut into bite sized pieces and add to the mix. It is quicker to prepare and cuts the cooking time by quite a bit. But if you have raw sausage meat you can cook that up and add it in at the end if you prefer.
Enjoy!
Miso Parsley Pesto Noodle and Sausage Bowls with Edamame
Ingredients
Miso Parsley Pesto
- 4 cloves garlic
- 2 1/2 tablespoons miso paste I used white miso paste
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 3 1/2 tablespoons lemon juice
- 3 tablespoons olive oil
- 1 bunch of parsley
Other ingredients
- 1 1/2 cup edamame
- 8 ounces penne ziti pasta or any dry noodles
- 12 ounces fully-cooked chicken sausages (4 of them) chopped into bit sized slices; see notes
- shredded parmesan optional garnish
Instructions
- Prep the pasta first: cook the pasta according to package instructions in a large saucepan.
- Make the pesto while the past cooks: add all pesto ingredients to a food processor or blender and mix until well combined. Set aside.
- When the pasta is done drain out the water and put it back into the saucepan you cooked it in. Add the sausage and edamame and cook on low heat for 3-5 minutes, just to warm up the sausage and edamame.
- When everything is well mixed and heated through, turn off the heat and add in all of the miso parsley pesto. Pour generously into bowls and top with parmesan (optional). Enjoy!