This Kale Sweet Potato White Bean Pesto Skillet is a super quick, easy, and healthy meatless meal! It uses mostly pantry staples, and you can add whatever protein you want, or leave it vegetarian! It packs beautifully for work lunches too!
This recipe was born out of having nothing in the fridge one day for dinner, being hangry, and needing something ASAP. I threw this together with leftover pesto from another recipe, kale that was about to go bad, leftover roasted sweet potatoes, a can of beans, and cauliflower rice from the freezer! I couldn’t believe how amazing and satisfying it was.
So I decided to make it again for the blog! I truly love anything with pesto in it, so this was a no brainer for me. Such an easy, healthy, meatless weeknight meal.
It would be amazing with chicken sausage or any other protein too! I just happened to love the vegetarian version and thought it could be customized to whatever you guys liked!
The first time I made this, I used kidney beans and a mixture of sweet potato rice and cauliflower rice, so feel free to get crazy here. I used cannellini beans this time because I love how creamy they are.
Growing up, my mom made this pasta with cannellini beans, TONS of garlic (I’m talking like 10 cloves), celery, a good amount of olive oil, a little tomato sauce, and salt and pepper. It’s literally one of the best things I’ve ever tasted, and I don’t know why because the ingredients are so simple and minimal. Sounds weird with the celery, I know, but those ingredients create magic together. No joke. I’ll have to share it on the blog. It’s seriously unreal!
And if you’re not a kale person, feel free to use whatever greens you like! Spinach, chard, etc.
Also, this would be amazing for brunch this weekend with fried eggs on top!
Keeping things short and sweet on this lovely Friday. Happy weekend!! xo
Kale Sweet Potato White Bean Pesto Skillet
This Kale Sweet Potato White Bean Pesto Skillet is a super quick, easy, and healthy meatless meal! It uses mostly pantry staples, and you can add whatever protein you want, or leave it vegetarian! It packs great for work lunches too!
Ingredients
- 1 medium sweet potato, diced into 1/2'' cubes
- 2 teaspoons + 1 tablespoon olive oil
- salt and pepper
- 1 (15.5 ounce) can cannellini beans, drained and rinsed
- 1 bunch kale, de-stemmed and chopped
- 2 cloves garlic, finely chopped
- 3 cups cauliflower rice
- 1/4 cup pesto (homemade or store-bought), plus extra for serving
- grated parmesan cheese, for serving (optional)
Instructions
Preheat oven to 400℉. Line a rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper. Add the sweet potatoes and 2 teaspoons of the olive oil. Season with salt and pepper and toss to coat. Roast for 20 minutes, or until tender and golden.
Meanwhile, heat a large skillet over medium heat and add the remaining olive oil. Once hot, add the garlic and sauté for a minute or so or until fragrant. Add the cauliflower rice and raise heat to medium-high. Sauté for 2-3 minutes. Add the kale and cook for an additional 4-5 minutes or until wilted.
Add the beans and the pesto and stir to combine. Cook for a minute or two or until warmed through. Once the sweet potatoes are finished roasting, add them to the skillet as well. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Serve with extra pesto and parmesan cheese if desired!
Love it! Simple staple ingredients, simple instructions, nutritious and quick assembly, and highly packable for lunch. Fits my lifestyle. More of these please, Molly!
Thanks so much Jan! Agreed. It’s on my list to share more simple recipes like this!