Noodles & Company Pesto Cavatappi Copycat

 

I’m going to be honest with you, I have never eaten at Noodles & Company. Truth be told, I thought it was some sort of Americanized lo mein place. Friend and fellow blogger, Alycia Nichols, with whom I discuss many recipes, told me how wonderful she found a copycat recipe for their pesto cavatappi. Considering that I had been making pesto the past week as well as harvesting cherry tomatoes like crazy, this seemed well worth trying.

The advantage that I had having never been to Noodles & Company is that I didn’t know what this was supposed to taste like. At Alicia’s suggestion, I added chopped rotisserie chicken, and let me say this is deceptively delicious! When I turned it out of the skillet onto a plate, I didn’t think it really looked like much. One bite, and I knew that this was going to be gobble-it-up delicious. Whether you have tried Noodles & Company or not, this is a recipe that you really need to try.

Noodles & Company Pesto Cavatappi Copycat

8 oz. cavatappi pasta

1 c. fresh mushrooms, thickly sliced

1 T. olive oil

1 c. halved cherry tomatoes

½ t. garlic salt

½ c. pesto sauce

½ c. heavy cream

½ c. freshly shredded Parmesan cheese

¼ - ½ c. reserved pasta water

Cook noodles according to package directions.

While the noodles are cooking, sauté mushrooms with olive oil over medium/high heat. I like to get a good sear on mushrooms to bring out that meaty taste, so I let them cook for about a minute before shaking the pan. Cook mushrooms for three minutes, add cherry tomatoes and garlic salt, and cook the tomatoes for one minute without disturbing, then lower heat to medium and continue cooking for seven minutes, stirring occasionally.

Reduce heat on tomatoes and mushrooms to low, and add the cooked and drained cavatappi to the pan. Stir, and then add pesto sauce to the mixture. Stir to coat noodles completely then add heavy cream, Parmesan cheese, and pasta water. Stir until creamy and serve. 

Top with additional Parmesan cheese, if desired.

 As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.