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There’s so much to love about springy pasta, creamy pesto sauce, and bright diced tomatoes, so it’s no wonder Pesto Cavatappi is Noodles and Company’s most popular dish. Here’s the perfected copycat recipe that’s faster, less expensive, and maybe even just a little more delicious.
Meggan’s notes
This is one of my absolute favorite quick dinners to make, whether or not I’m pressed for time. It used to be my standing order at Noodles and Company, but now that I don’t live anywhere near one, I set about figuring out how to crack the cavatappi code and make it myself
And that’s just what I did! Because when you can’t get to a Noodles, you have to bring the Noodles to you. The basil pesto flavor mixed with heavy cream is just to die for, and if you toss it over cavatappi noodles, nothing is better!
Table of Contents
Recipe ingredients
At a Glance: Here is a quick snapshot of what ingredients are in this recipe.
Please see the recipe card below for specific quantities.
Ingredient notes
- Cavatappi: You can substitute rotini, rigatoni, bow-tie, or any small or medium-sized pasta.
- Mushrooms: Noodles & Company puts them in, but you can leave them out.
- White wine: Choose a dry white wine such as Pinot Grigio or Chardonnay. Or, leave the wine out and substitute more chicken broth.
- Pesto: Make homemade pesto in your blender with fresh basil, parsley, olive oil, garlic, parmesan cheese, and a nut. Pine nut pesto is classic but Walnut pesto is really great too and a little cheaper to make. Store-bought pesto is fine too!
Step-by-step instructions
- In a large saucepan or stock pot, bring 4 quarts of water and salt to a boil. Add pasta and cook until al dente, about 10 to 12 minutes. Drain well. Meanwhile, heat oil in a large pan over medium heat until shimmering. Add tomatoes and mushrooms (if using) and cook for about 5 minutes, until some of the liquid has been released and the tomatoes are heated through.
- Stir in the broth, wine, and cream and bring to a boil; reduce heat to medium and cook until the sauce has thickened slightly, about 2 minutes.
- Add pesto and stir until heated through, about 1-2 minutes.
- Add pasta and toss until uniformly coated in the sauce. Transfer to a serving dish or individual plates and garnish with Parmesan cheese.
Recipe tips and variations
- Yield: This recipe makes about 8 cups of pasta, enough for 8 first-course or side dish servings or 4 extremely generous bowls of pesto pasta.
- Storage: Store leftovers in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 4 days.
- Vegetarian: Substitute pasta cooking water for the chicken broth. The starches in the pasta water make the recipe even creamier.
- Chicken: Cut up chicken breasts into chunks and add it to the olive oil before you add the tomatoes and mushrooms.
- Shrimp: Add them to the skillet with the mushrooms and tomatoes to cook (they cook quickly).
- Zucchini noodles: Super healthy dinner ahead! Get the sauce made and stir in raw zucchini ribbons. Serve when the zucchini is just warm. Don’t overcook it, because zucchini tastes best as pasta when it still has a little crunch.
- More mix-ins: Black olives, fresh spinach or kale, or chopped sun-dried tomatoes are all tasty options. Throw in whole grape tomatoes to save on prep time, and add pinches of red pepper flakes for spice.
Frequently Asked Questions
Wedges of fresh Focaccia bread would be absolutely delicious, but if you’re looking for something lower in carbohydrates and higher in protein, try a side of simple grilled chicken or steak. You can really balance out the meal that way (and maybe even avoid a food coma!).
Cavatappi is a cork-screw-shaped, hollow pasta.
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Pesto Cavatappi (Noodles & Company Copycat)
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon Salt
- 1 pound cavatappi pasta or other small pasta
- 1 teaspoon olive oil
- 1 large tomato cored and diced
- 4 ounces white button mushrooms trimmed and sliced (optional)
- 1/4 cup chicken broth or vegetable broth
- 1/4 cup dry white wine or chicken broth
- ¼ cup heavy whipping cream
- 1 cup pesto (see note 4)
- 1 cup shredded Parmesan cheese
Instructions
- In a large saucepan or stock pot, bring 4 quarts of water and salt to a boil. Add pasta and cook until al dente, about 10 to 12 minutes. Drain well.
- Meanwhile, heat oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat until shimmering. Add tomatoes and mushrooms (if using) and cook for about 5 minutes, until some of the liquid has been released and the tomatoes are heated through.
- Stir in the broth, wine, and cream and bring to a boil; reduce heat to medium and cook until the sauce has thickened slightly, about 2 minutes.
- Add pesto and stir until heated through, about 2 minutes. Add pasta and toss until uniformly coated in the sauce. Transfer to a serving dish or individual plates and garnish with Parmesan cheese.
Recipe Video
Notes
- White wine: Choose a dry white wine such as Pinot Grigio or Chardonnay. Or, leave the wine out and substitute more chicken broth.
- Pesto: To make it yourself, In a food processor or blender, add 2 c. fresh basil, 1 c. fresh parsley, ¼ c. Parmesan cheese, ¼ c. walnuts or pine nuts, and 3 cloves garlic. Pulse until coarsely chopped, about 10 pulses. With the motor running, slowly drizzle in ½ c. olive oil and process until smooth. Season to taste with salt and pepper.
- Yield: This recipe makes about 8 cups of pasta, enough for 8 first-course or side dish servings or 4 extremely generous bowls of pasta.
- Storage: Store leftovers covered in the refrigerator for up to 4 days.
Can I use half and half instead of heavy cream?
Hi Christina, yes I think so! I can’t think of any reason why not. If the sauce consistency seems loose, just simmer it a little longer. You should be fine! Thank you!
I made this tonight for dinner and the family LOVED it. I followed the recipe but used vegetable broth and white cooking wine as that is what I had on hand. Absolutely DELISH! Thank you, Meggan!
I made this tonight and the family LOVED it. It was DELICIOUS! I followed the recipe but used vegetable broth and white cooking wine as those were the items I had on hand. Absolutely DELISH! Thank you, Meggan!
For a healthier version, is there an option to replace the heavy cream with something? Or can I just take it out?
I lived down there for 2 years, I’m originally from the UP and had to move back when my mom got really sick! But I still root for the Badgers and go visit friends as often as I can.. Now my daughter, who was born there, is working hard in high school to go to UW, so she can go back home!! I was never homesick for tbe UP but oh my God was I homesick for Madison when I left, I cried for months! 15 years later and I would still move back in a heartbeat if I could!! Love the recipes and the tips!! Talk to ya soon my fellow Badger friend!!
I used to live in Madison, WI and Noodles and Co on State St was one of our favourite places to go! I ALWAYS orxerex the pesto cavatappi, always! And now I live in the U.P. of MI and there is no Noodles within 3 1/2hours, so i was really excited to see your recipe today when brainstorming dinner ideas! We all love pesto in our family but I never know what to do with it, and have tried some horrid recipes! But yours was so easy, quick and tasted EXACTLY like my favorite dish from Noidles I had been craving!! Thank you so much and you have a new follower for life, especially if all your stuff is that easy and delicious!!
Hi Missi! Are you a fellow badger?? I first learned about Noodles & Co. in Madison, too, although now they are more wide spread (but not in the UP, ha ha!). Thank you so much for the lovely comment, and I hope you like anything else you may come across on the site. 🙂 Thanks again and take care!
Ask all the questions you want. 🙂 For me personally, I would rather substitute with more chicken broth. The reason is, the white wine is a very recent addition to the recipe (as of January 2017) because a former Noodles & Co. employee told me they use white wine at the restaurant. Up until that point (and you can see the comment above) I used only chicken broth and I thought it tasted perfect. However, if I get insider info like that, I will always change the recipe to reflect it. So. If you had visited this blog in December of 2016, you would have seen the recipe written with 1/2 cup chicken broth, no white wine in sight. So that’s how I’d make it. I hope that helps!
I promise this is my last question… would you prefer to substitute the white wine with chicken broth or white cooking wine?
Would White Cooking Wine work? I hear the taste is nothing like drinking wine. Thoughts?
I definitely think it would work, Whitney. White cooking wine tends to be a little sweeter/richer in my opinion, but I think a lot of that would cook off in the pan. And pesto is super flavorful – a little white cooking wine could never compete!
Can you leave out the wine?
YES! I actually never had it in the recipe until recently when a former Noodles & Co. employee informed me that’s what they use. Just use chicken broth in place of the wine. I’ll update the recipe. Thank you for your question!