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Light Lemon Pesto Pasta with Turkey Meatballs. Made with hearty Banza chickpea pasta, lemon pesto and flavorful oven-baked meatballs.
Pasta is our love language! If it’s yours too, you’re going to be obsessed with this Lemon Pesto Pasta and Turkey Meatballs.
In the spring and summer we crave lighter meals durning the day that are full of fresh flavors. We wanted to take your spaghetti and meatball dinner and make if bursting with fresh flavor for the summer. That’s when we had the idea to make a yummy lemon pesto pasta and turkey meatball dinner.
The Chickpea Banza Linguine Pasta and lean turkey meatballs create a delicious lighter pasta dish that is perfect for warmer weather. This makes such a large serving you’ll have pasta for days! And trust us on this one, you will be dreaming of eating the leftovers the next day.
This post is all about lemon pesto pasta.
Lemon Pesto Pasta with Italian Turkey Meatballs
What’s in this recipe?
Banza Linguine Pasta: Banza pasta is made from chickpeas, which makes it higher in protein and fiber and lower in carbs compared to normal pasta. We have been using this pasta for years and like the flavor profile more than other store-bought pastas.
Homemade Lemon Pesto: Our homemade pesto is a traditional recipe with a touch of lemon flavor. This combination of bunches of basil, pine nuts, olive oil with a twist of lemon zest and lemon juice
Ground Turkey: Since we were creating a lighter dish, we used ground turkey. The turkey also complemented this dish very well. This meatball recipe can be interchanged with ground chicken or ground grass-fed beef if you would like.
Almond flour: Almond flour is used as a binder and can add moisture to the meatballs.
Parmesan Cheese: Parmesan cheese is mixed into the meatballs and used as a topping for the pasta. It is one of our favorite cheeses to add to dishes because it has a great rich flavor.
Italian seasoning: Adds a a savory flavor to the meatballs.
Red Pepper Flakes: Red pepper flakes add a nice spice to this recipe. We only add a 1 teaspoon to this recipe but you can adjust depending on how much ‘kick’ you want to add.
Za’atar Seasoning (optional): Za’atar seasoning is a blend of thyme, oregano, and sesame seeds. We bought some from Trader Joes and have been using it in everything lately.
How to Make Homemade Lemon Pesto
You will need a lot of basil for this step! Add 2-3 cups of basil leaves, parmesan cheese, pine nuts, garlic cloves and salt to a food processor. Blend this mixture together and slowly add the olive oil. If you add the oil too quickly, it will separate after blending.
Mix the pesto with the warm cooked Banza protein pasta. Top with the meat balls. Season with pepper and top with shredded parmesan cheese.
How to Make The Italian Meatballs
We started with prepping the meatballs, because this process is the most time consuming step of the recipe. If your meat is frozen, start by thawing the meat. But, if you are using fresh meat, you can hop right into the mixing steps.
You will need a medium bowl to create the meatball mixture. Start by adding the eggs, almond flour, cheese and seasonings together. You will add the ground meat next and mix together with your hands.
Next, form the meat mixture into 12-14 meatballs. Place on a parchment paper lined baking sheet. Cook the meatballs on 425°F for 25 minutes or until they reach 165°F internally.
Light Lemon Pesto Pasta with Italian Meatballs
Light Lemon Pesto Pasta with Turkey Meatballs made with hearty Banza chickpea pasta, lemon pesto and flavorful oven-baked meatballs.
- Total Time: 50 minutes
- Yield: 8 1x
Ingredients
Turkey Meatballs
- 1 lb ground turkey
- 2 eggs
- 1/4 cup almond flour
- 1/4 cup Parmesan cheese
- 1 tsp italian seasoning
- 1 tsp red pepper flakes
- 1 tsp za'atar seasoning
- 2 tsp minced onion seasoning
- salt and pepper (to season)
Lemon Pesto
- 3 cups basil
- 1/2 cup grated parmesan cheese
- 1 lemon, (juiced and zested)
- 1/3 cup pine nuts
- 6 cloves garlic
- 1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil
- salt to season
Banza Protein Pasta
- 1 box Linguine Banza pasta
Instructions
Turkey Meatballs
- Preheat oven to 425°F. In a medium size bowl mix eggs, almond flour, cheese and seasonings together.
- Add turkey and mix the egg mixture with your hands until combined.
- Form into 12-14 even-sized meat balls. Place on a parchment paper- lined baking sheet. Cook for 22-25 minutes until reaches internal temperature of 165°F.
Lemon Pesto
- In a food processor, add basil, parmesan, garlic, pine nuts, lemon juice and lemon zest. Blend until mixture is encorporated.
- While the mixture is blending, add EVOO slowly to avoid separation. If you add the oil to quickly, it may not fully incorporate with the pesto and be separated at the end.
- Blend until desired consistency is reached. The pesto should be a bit grainy. Add salt to taste.
Make the Pasta
- Follow instructions on pasta box. Once pasta is cooked, add the lemon pesto to the pot and mix.
- Serve with turkey meatballs and top with shredded parmesan cheese and pepper.
- Prep Time: 20 minutes
- Cook Time: 30 minutes
- Category: dinner, Main Course
- Cuisine: Italian
This post is all about lemon pesto pasta.
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