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Ready in just 15 minutes, this pesto chickpea recipe is extra creamy and high in protein thanks to cottage cheese! It’s a quick vegetarian comfort food that’s as delicious as it is fun to eat.
If you loved my Lemon Pepper Chickpeas or Marry Me Chickpeas, this recipe will be a sure-favorite! Pair with Air Fryer Veggies and good bread for an easy weeknight dinner.
save this recipe!You know the feeling: 5 p.m. hits and you’re hungry but feel like there’s nothing to eat. That’s where pesto chickpeas shine!
Made with just four ingredients and high in protein and fiber, they are a hearty meal perfect for a busy weeknight.
Weeknight dinner? check!
- High Protein Vegetarian Meal: With an entire tub of cottage cheese blended plus chickpeas, this recipe is packed with protein and fiber!
- Versatile: You can enjoy these chickpeas with crusty bread or over rice, pasta, or quinoa, just to name a few possibilities.
Reader rating
“So delicious, fast and easy!! Loved eating it with toasted fresh sourdough bread.” —Ivy
Key Ingredients
This is just an overview of the ingredients. Jump to the recipe card for the measurements.
- Chickpeas: We kind of love chickpea recipes around here (though any white bean would do–butter beans are great in this recipe!).
- Cottage Cheese: I prefer full-fat cottage cheese for this sauce since it’s the bulk of the cheesiness. But, low fat will work if you’re watching macros.
- Pesto: I love using homemade pesto, but store-bought is convenient and will work well too.
- Spinach: This is the best recipe for using up wilting spinach because it all blends into the green sauce!
just keep blending
Most people think they don’t like cottage cheese because of the texture and I get it! The trick is to fully blend out all the curds, and that can take longer than you think. As the blender heats up, the curds will blend easier so just keep blending. And if you don’t get it perfectly smooth, that’s ok too. It’ll still taste great!
P.S. Try my creamy pesto butter beans with cherry tomatoes next!
Creamy High Protein Pesto Chickpea Skillet
Ingredients
- 1 24-oz tub low-fat cottage cheese
- 1 6.5-oz jar pesto
- 2 to 3 handfuls fresh spinach
- 2 15-oz cans chickpeas, drained
- To serve: freshly grated parmesan
Instructions
- Blend: Add 1 24-oz tub low-fat cottage cheese, 1 6.5-oz jar pesto, and 2 to 3 handfuls fresh spinach to a blender. Blend on high-speed until smooth, about 1 to 2 minutes.
- Heat: Pour mixture into a pot or high-sided saute pan. Stir in 2 15-oz cans chickpeas (drained) and gently warm over low heat for about 10 minutes, stirring often.
- Serve: Top with grated parmesan and serve warm with good crusty bread, over rice or pasta, or with veggies!
Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition information calculated by Sarah Bond, degreed nutritionist.
did you make this?Leave a comment below and tag @liveeatlearn on social media! I love seeing what you’ve made!
I can’t eat any dairy – any dairy free or lactose free substitutes I could use for the cottage cheese?
If you can’t find a lactose/dairy-free cottage cheese, you could use silken tofu as an alternative (while keeping the high protein content).
If i wanna use silken tofu instead, how much should i add?
I would use one 14 ounce block of silken tofu to replace the cottage cheese!
Hi! What is the serving size for this? And is that number of calories just for the pesto chickpeas?
Hi Nicole! A serving for this one is just one fourth of the entire recipe. All the nutrition information can be found under their recipe at the end of the post. Happy eating!
I love pesto, and I love chickpeas, so this was a definite recipe for me to try.
I added a little garlic because, well because I love garlic in all savory food. Loved every bite!
Love hearing that, thanks for trying it Patricia!
On average, how much protein and how many calories are in your dishes?
It’s hard to say because each dish is pretty different, but I always include nutrition information below the recipe card at the end of the post.
Do you think I could use ricotta cheese instead of cottage cheese? I only have ricotta in the fridge!
I haven’t tested this one with ricotta so I really can’t say for sure, but I think it would work! I would love to hear how it goes if you try it out.
I came to ask the same. My fam doesn’t like the taste of cottage cheese, even blended w other flavors.
This is such a low effort/high reward recipe!!! It has become my go-to when I want something that takes about two minutes to throw together, but is still nutritious, delicious, and feels like a whole meal rather than a girl-dinner. I often scale down the sauce to just make two portions since I’m cooking for myself and throw it over pasta, veggies, and some vegetarian meat for a complete meal. I usually add some salt, garlic paste, and nutritional yeast to the sauce but this is truly a fantastic base recipe. I literally gasped when I first ate this because of how simple, yet delicious it was!
You’re the best, thanks for the feedback Lizzie!
Would frozen spinach work with this??
Yes, frozen and thawed spinach should work well!
Such a delicious recipe and so quick to prepare. We had ours with sourdough bread. Will definitely become a regular go to recipe.
So glad it hit the spot Nicholette, thanks for sharing how it went!
This was very tasty with such little effort. My only issue was that it was a bit watery when I reheated it the next day. Do you think straining the cottage cheese first might help? Maybe add a tablespoon or two of cornstarch?? Any ideas?
I would try adding a dash of cornstarch mixed with water!
This worked exactly as written, thanks! My entire family devoured this including my extremely picky 11yr old. The pesto I used was a lemon pesto and it really added a brightness to the dish. This will be a repeat meal for sure!!!
Thanks for the sweet review Emily, so glad your family enjoyed it!