• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
Vegan Richa
  • Home
  • Recipes
    • (new) Recipe Filters
    • Popular Recipes
    • Breakfast
    • Lunch / Dinner
    • Dessert
    • Indian
    • Instant Pot
    • Burgers
    • Pizza
    • Recipe Index
  • Videos
    • Instant Pot
    • Dessert
    • Holidays
    • Easy Vegan Meals
    • All Recipe Videos
  • CookBooks
    • Vegan Richa’s Instant Pot Cookbook(PREORDER NOW)
    • Vegan Richa’s Everyday Kitchen (Print & Digital)
    • Vegan Richa’s Indian Kitchen (Print & Digital)
  • Resources
    • How To Start A Food Blog
    • Resources for Food Bloggers
    • Vegan Subs & Resources
    • Our Vegan Journey and FAQs
    • Indian Pantry
    • Indian Dal / Lentil Names
  • Shop
  • About / Contact
menu icon
go to homepage
subscribe
search icon
Homepage link
  • Home
  • Recipes
  • Videos
  • CookBooks
  • Shop
  • About
  • NEW! Instant Pot Cookbook
    • Bloglovin
    • Facebook
    • Instagram
    • Pinterest
    • RSS
    • Twitter
    • YouTube
  • ×

    Home » italian

    Pesto Spaghetti with Vegan Meatballs (Chickpea Walnut balls)

    Published: Sep 22, 2017 · Modified: Dec 31, 2018 by Richa 49 Comments

    Jump to Recipe   Print Recipe

    Amazing Pesto Spaghetti with Vegan Meatballs made with Chickpeas. Vegetarian Chickpea Walnut “meatballs” over pesto pasta. 24 gms of Protein per serve. Ready in 40 Minutes. Vegan Soyfree Recipe. Can be Glutenfree.

    Amazing Pesto Spaghetti with Vegan Meatballs made with Chickpeas. 24 Gm of Protein. Vegetarian Chickpea Walnut "meatballs" over pesto pasta. Ready in 40 Minutes. Vegan Soyfree Recipe. Can be Glutenfree | VeganRicha.com

    A good Spaghetti is what I need on weekdays to feel satiated and happy. Pasta cooked perfectly, tossed in pesto or marinara with these easy Chickpea Walnut “Meatballs” / Balls.  

    The meal comes together quickly with some planning. Make the pesto ahead of time. Cook some onion and garlic, toss it in the processor with the ball ingredients, shape or scoop and bake. While they bake, cook the pasta. Toss, garnish, add the toasty warm balls and done. Premade pesto or tomato based sauce makes it a faster meal. Make a double batch of these chickpea balls to whip up a meatball sub sandwich, add to wraps or serve with dips. Whats your favorite way to serve these super delicious chickpea balls?

    Amazing Pesto Spaghetti with Vegan Meatballs made with Chickpeas. Vegetarian Chickpea Walnut "meatballs" over pesto pasta. Ready in 40 Minutes. Vegan Soyfree Recipe. Can be Glutenfree | VeganRicha.com

    Amazing Pesto Spaghetti with Vegan Meatballs made with Chickpeas. 24 Gm of Protein per Serve. Vegetarian Chickpea Walnut "meatballs" over pesto pasta. Ready in 40 Minutes. Vegan Soyfree Recipe. Can be Glutenfree | VeganRicha.com

    Why call them “meatballs” rather than bean balls, veggie balls, balls, is because most searches are for that not and for bean balls. I can keep creating amazing meals, but if they are not named well, no one will find them through search. Another eg is that if I call my cashew cheese, cultured cashew block, no one will find it. Eventually there will be universally accepted vegan terms, so bear with me till then. 

    More Pastas from the blog

    • Fettuccine Alfredo with caramelized mushrooms. So Good
    • Cauliflower Parmesan Pasta Bake – sliced cauliflower, baked then dressed in vegan mozz and baked over pasta. Whats not to love!
    • Pumpkin Sage Pasta with pumpkin cream sauce and crisp Sage  – Fall Comfort
    • Black pepper Mac and Cheese with Potato Carrot Cheese Sauce.
    • Chickpea Chorizo, Quinoa shells in tomato sauce. GF, this chorizo is amazing in tacos too.
    • Garlic Pasta with Cajun Cauliflower – << a hit with Everyone! Make it!

    In other reading, If you are transitioning to a vegan or plant based diet and need help or a mentor to make things easier, help navigate new products, foods, situations, Vegan outreach has a mentor program to help. You can join the program here.


    Also, please sign this letter to help these retired greyhounds kept in filthy conditions to sell their blood (graphic, scroll to the bottom for the letter).

    Balls ready to bake.

    Amazing Pesto Spaghetti with Vegan Meatballs made with Chickpeas. Vegetarian Chickpea Walnut "meatballs" over pesto pasta. Ready in 40 Minutes. Vegan Soyfree Recipe. Can be Glutenfree | VeganRicha.com

    These chickpea walnut balls are great to make meatball subs, over marinara or any which way! Bake and keep these handy for quick meals. The recipe looks long because of both the pesto and meatball recipes in it. Both can be made ahead to shorten the active time. Make this Easy and Amazing meal and let me know how it turned out!

    4 More days to Release Day! Get the Preorder bundle today! Tag me #VeganRichasEverydayKitchen when you start cooking from the book. 

    Amazing Pesto Spaghetti with Vegan Meatballs made with Chickpeas. Vegetarian Chickpea Walnut "meatballs" over pesto pasta. Ready in 40 Minutes. Vegan Soyfree Recipe. Can be Glutenfree | VeganRicha.com

    Amazing Pesto Spaghetti with Vegan Meatballs made with Chickpeas. Vegetarian Chickpea Walnut "meatballs" over pesto pasta. Ready in 40 Minutes. Vegan Soyfree Recipe. Can be Glutenfree | VeganRicha.com
    Print Recipe
    4.95 from 17 votes

    Pesto Spaghetti with Vegan Meatballs (Chickpea Walnut Meatballs)

    Amazing Pesto Spaghetti with Vegan Meatballs made with Chickpeas. 24 gm of protein per serve. Vegetarian Chickpea Walnut "meatballs" over pesto pasta. Ready in 40 Minutes. Vegan Soyfree Recipe. Can be Glutenfree.
    Prep Time10 mins
    Cook Time40 mins
    Total Time50 mins
    Course: Main Course
    Cuisine: Italian, Vegan
    Servings: 4
    Calories: 636kcal
    Author: Vegan Richa

    Ingredients

    For the Chickpea Meatballs:

    • 1 small onion
    • 5 cloves of garlic
    • 1/3 cup (39 g) walnuts
    • 2 tbsp flaxmeal mixed with 1/4 cup water
    • 1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
    • 1 tbsp pesto or a handful of basil
    • 15 oz chickpeas , 15 oz can or 1.5 cups cooked
    • 1 tsp oregano
    • 1/2 tsp (0.5 tsp) parsley
    • 1/2 tsp (0.5 tsp) salt , less or more depending on the chickpeas
    • 1/4 tsp (0.25 tsp) red pepper flakes
    • 2 tbsp (1 tbsp) nutritional yeast
    • 1/4 cup (27 g) breadcrumbs

    For the Pesto:

    • 2 cups (1.69 oz) basil or basil + parsley/other greens (packed lightly)
    • 2 cloves of garlic
    • 2 tbsp walnuts or cashews or toasted sun flower seeds , less or more to preference
    • 1 tbsp nutritional yeast   (use 1/2 tsp ground mustard and 1/2 tsp miso to sub)
    • 1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
    • 1 tbsp lemon juice
    • 1/4 tsp (0.25 tsp) salt
    • water as needed , a few tbsp

    For the pasta:

    • 8 to 9 oz spaghetti
    • black pepper pepper flakes for garnish

    Instructions

    • Make your pesto by blending the basil, garlic, nuts, nutritional yeast in a small food processor or blender until minced. Add the salt, lemon, oil and pulse. Add water to make desired consistency. Taste and adjust flavor with more lemon, salt, nutritional yeast or basil. Pesto can be made ahead and stored in the fridge for upto 3 days or frozen in ice cubes for a month.
    • Chickpea Balls: Heat 1/2 tsp oil in a skillet over medium heat. Add the onion and garlic and cook until translucent
    • Pulse the nuts in a food processor until a coarse meal. Add the onion mixture and the rest of the ingredients and pulse to combine.  I usually use the same food processor that I used for pesto. no need to clean as we add pesto to the balls as well. 
    • Transfer chickpea mixture to a bowl. Add breadcrumbs and mix in. Taste and adjust salt and flavor. (Add some poultry seasoning or more herbs if needed). Chill for 10 minutes. Preheat oven to 425 degrees F.
    • Make balls of the mixture or use an ice cream scoop and place on parchment lined sheet. 1 to 1.5 inch balls (16 to 18 balls). Bake at 425 degrees F for 25 minutes or until golden.
    • Cook the spaghetti according to instructions on the package.
    • Toss in the pesto. Serve with meatballs a very good dash black pepper and red pepper flakes and additional lemon if needed.

    Video

    Notes

    To make this gluten-free, use gluten-free breadcrumbs in the balls or coarsely ground oats. Use gluten-free pasta of choice or over zoodles. 
     
    Nutrition is 1 of 4 Serves.

    Nutrition

    Nutrition Facts
    Pesto Spaghetti with Vegan Meatballs (Chickpea Walnut Meatballs)
    Amount Per Serving
    Calories 636 Calories from Fat 196
    % Daily Value*
    Fat 21.8g34%
    Saturated Fat 2g13%
    Sodium 503mg22%
    Potassium 769mg22%
    Carbohydrates 88g29%
    Fiber 14g58%
    Sugar 9g10%
    Protein 24g48%
    Vitamin A 700IU14%
    Vitamin C 8.7mg11%
    Calcium 140mg14%
    Iron 6mg33%
    * Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.

    Amazing Pesto Spaghetti with Vegan Meatballs made with Chickpeas. Vegetarian Chickpea Walnut "meatballs" over pesto pasta. Ready in 40 Minutes. Vegan Soyfree Recipe. Can be Glutenfree | VeganRicha.com

    Sharing is caring!

    Share on Pinterest Share on Facebook Share on WhatsApp Share on Twitter Share on Email
    « Vegan Pumpkin Coffee Cake with Pecan Crumb
    Vegan Richa’s Everyday Kitchen Cookbook is Here Now! + Win Copies! »


    ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ If you Love the Recipe, Please consider rating it using stars in comments! It helps readers and helps more people find the recipe online! I love hearing from you all! ⭐⭐⭐⭐

    Reader Interactions

    Comments

      Leave a Reply Cancel reply

      Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

      Recipe Rating




      This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

    1. Sam

      September 10, 2021 at 5:29 am

      5 stars
      So delish! My kids favorite!

      Reply
      • Vegan Richa Support

        September 12, 2021 at 4:13 pm

        Awesome !! hope you love it too

        Reply
    2. Sam T

      January 03, 2021 at 3:42 pm

      5 stars
      I have been searching for a good veggie meatball recipe – this one is definitely a keeper! Very flavorful and good texture too. Thanks.

      Reply
      • Vegan Richa Support

        January 04, 2021 at 1:59 pm

        a keeper! love it

        Reply
    3. Julie

      August 19, 2020 at 12:28 pm

      My daughter wants spaghetti and meatballs like lady and the tramp eat, so I am glad I found this recipe! How many dry chickpeas yields the 1.5 cooked chickpeas?

      Reply
    4. Svetlana

      April 13, 2020 at 11:03 am

      Thank you for a great recipe! Yummy!

      Reply
    5. Terri

      November 24, 2019 at 2:53 pm

      5 stars
      The chickpea paste was so good I might put it on a sandwich!

      Reply
      • Richa

        November 24, 2019 at 4:42 pm

        yay!

        Reply
    6. Angela

      June 26, 2019 at 10:46 pm

      5 stars
      Loved this! It is probably one of the best meatball substitutes I have ever tried. They hold their shape VERY well, which seems to always be the issue but not this time. I followed the recipe but guesstimated on spices, oil, etc. Just until it seemed like the right texture. I did substitute ground oats for the breadcrumbs just for the sake of not running to the store. Worked quite nice. Yumm! Thanks!

      Reply
      • Richa

        June 26, 2019 at 10:50 pm

        awesome! thanks!

        Reply
    7. Leah

      March 14, 2019 at 6:35 pm

      5 stars
      Love this, thank you! I swapped pumpkin seeds for the nuts as they are more locally produced. They worked out delish!

      Reply
      • Richa

        March 14, 2019 at 6:55 pm

        awesome!

        Reply
    8. cathy o

      September 08, 2018 at 5:05 am

      5 stars
      hi, is the pesto sauce freezable?
      this dish is delicious, btw, thank you!!

      Reply
      • Richa

        September 08, 2018 at 10:40 am

        yes,freeze pesto in ice cubes tray, remove the cubes then in a box or ziplock

        Reply
    9. cathy

      August 20, 2018 at 8:16 am

      I cannot find any flax/Linseed meal where I am. What can i use instead?

      Reply
      • Richa

        August 20, 2018 at 10:20 am

        chia seeds will work or egg replacer for 2 eggs or just use more flour

        Reply
    10. Stephanie

      August 06, 2018 at 9:26 am

      4 stars
      I made these for my chickpea-loving 2 year old. He really liked them! I found they were really nice and crispy outside, but very soft inside (read: mushy).
      I found the recipe ingredients exactly, but did leave them in the processor a couple of seconds longer to keep my son from picking out minced onion pieces and I let them set in the fridge for an hour instead of 10 minutes. Could this have impacted the result?
      Note: I also made these oil free by sauteeing my onions and garlic in homemade veggie broth.

      Reply
      • Richa

        August 06, 2018 at 10:33 am

        Yes, that will probably over process the chickpeas. You can add the onion garlic mixture halfway while pulsing the walnuts and pulse all of them to break the onions down into coarse meal size like walnuts. Then add the chickpeas and pulse only till chickpeas are mixed but there is still texture. Chickpeas can easily become a paste on over blending which will cause the mix to be pasty moist inside. You can also add some cooked rice or breadcrumbs for additional texture to avoid the pasty moistness

        Reply
    11. Monica

      June 29, 2018 at 9:31 am

      Is the parsley in the meatballs fresh or dried? I’m assuming by the amount it’s dried, but wondering if fresh would be OK, perhaps in a slightly larger quantity?

      Reply
      • Richa

        June 29, 2018 at 10:34 am

        yes its dried. You can use a tbsp of fresh parlsey or just eyeball it.

        Reply
    12. Liz

      May 23, 2018 at 6:41 pm

      5 stars
      If I’m being fully honest, I was hesitant to try this recipe because I’ve tried so many different vegan meatball recipes and they all suck (and because I’m lazy). But this one? Oh my god was it amazing. I would eat this every day of my life if it was a socially acceptable thing to do. Thank you so much for this!!

      Reply
      • Richa

        May 23, 2018 at 7:18 pm

        Thats amazing! So glad you loved them!

        Reply
    13. Susana

      January 28, 2018 at 1:38 pm

      5 stars
      I did just the balls and cooked them on the stove, but I had to comment: they were amazingly tasty and had a very nice texture! The pesto should go delicious with them, but really, everyone should make the balls even if, like me, they don’t have fresh basil around. In my case, I did a quick capers, chilly and mint sauce with olive oil and lemon to go with the spaghetti instead of the pesto and it was really good.

      Reply
      • Richa

        January 28, 2018 at 5:07 pm

        Thats awesome! I also serve them with marinara and they work so well!

        Reply
    14. David

      January 07, 2018 at 7:31 pm

      5 stars
      Just made this and it was amazing! Thank you for this recipe. I also made dinner prep easier by making the pesto and balls earlier in the day and keeping them both in the refrigerator. When it came time to start dinner, I pulled the balls out of the fridge, placed them on the parchment paper, and let them cook. I used fettuccini noodles for this recipe to try to get more pesto in each bite and it worked fantastically. When I make this recipe again in the future I am going to experiment with different types of pasta.

      Reply
    15. Ina

      November 27, 2017 at 8:22 pm

      Can I use chia seeds instead of flax meal? Or any other substitutes that you recommend for flaxmeal? Thanks!

      Reply
      • Richa

        November 28, 2017 at 10:38 am

        chia seeds will work fine

        Reply
    16. Fareeda

      September 30, 2017 at 9:04 am

      5 stars
      This recipe was time consuming, but well worth the effort. We had it for dinner and everyone loved it.

      For the pesto, I used fresh mint and fresh basil growing in my garden. I added store-bought spinach……Delicious!!

      Reply
      • Richa

        September 30, 2017 at 11:34 am

        Awesome! I usually split it up by making the pesto before and prepping the balls and keeping them refrigerated for the day and bake then at dinner.

        Reply
    17. Diana

      September 29, 2017 at 3:56 pm

      5 stars
      Love you recipes..you are teaching me how to cook healthy everyday. I was thinking about “air frying”(that seems to be the thing now) the walnut balls, would that work and what do you think about “air frying vs. oven baking?

      Reply
      • Richa

        September 30, 2017 at 7:53 pm

        Airfrying will work for most baked recipes. For this one the balls will be slightly moist inside when airfried, thats all.

        Reply
    18. Johanna

      September 27, 2017 at 7:25 am

      Do the chickpea “meatball” freeze well? Wondering about making a batch ahead and freezing them. Thanks – this looks good!

      Reply
      • Richa

        September 28, 2017 at 10:45 am

        yes they should. You can freeze them raw or slightly baked. then thaw, bake or panfry

        Reply
    19. Vids

      September 24, 2017 at 7:14 pm

      Sounds amazing, cant wait to try it out. For the ‘meatballs’, can I substitute any other nut (cashews, almonds, macadamias) for the walnuts?

      Reply
      • Richa

        September 24, 2017 at 9:02 pm

        yes totally, use any nuts.

        Reply
    20. Cassie Tran

      September 24, 2017 at 9:17 am

      I totally agree with you on fitting the titles into the mainstream search range. I think your blog name already establishes that your recipes are vegan-friendly, so it’s not like it’s always necessary to say veggie or dairy-free! But anyhow, this recipe looks to die for! I love the pesto sauce. YUM!

      Reply
      • Richa

        September 24, 2017 at 10:26 am

        <3 <3

        Reply
    21. Reta Bray

      September 23, 2017 at 2:25 pm

      5 stars
      Made this today, good! But now I see the nutrition label, 23 grams of fat, really? from just a bit of olive oil and nuts? Seems very high.

      Reply
      • Richa

        September 23, 2017 at 6:39 pm

        Walnuts are pretty high fat. If you use cashews, it might be 17-18. 38+ gms in 1/2 cup walnuts.

        Reply
        • Rishika

          February 20, 2020 at 12:53 am

          If I use sunflower seeds how much would the fat be?

          Reply
          • Richa

            February 20, 2020 at 1:32 pm

            you can use free calculation tools like cronometer.com to calculate with changes

            Reply
    22. Darbi

      September 22, 2017 at 8:36 pm

      5 stars
      I saw this on my Facebook feed and automatically went to the store for pesto ingredients. It smells so good in my kitchen right now! Thank you so much.

      Reply
      • Richa

        September 24, 2017 at 10:24 am

        yay!

        Reply
    23. Susan

      September 22, 2017 at 8:04 pm

      These look good, but I would think pan-frying would make them tastier than baking (for those who don’t avoid oil). Have you tried them both ways?

      Reply
      • Richa

        September 22, 2017 at 8:33 pm

        The mixture would need additional breadcrumbs and flour as there is quite some moisture. Then you can pan fry them. You can also bake them a brush of oil on the balls for browning. I made them both ways. The panfried didnt keep their shapes as well because of the moisture but otherwise flavor is all good either ways.

        Reply
    24. JdW

      September 22, 2017 at 7:37 pm

      The information about the greyhounds is heart breaking. I hope that signing the petition helps.
      As usual, your recipes look amazing and I can’t wait till your cookbook arrives on Tuesday.

      Reply
      • Richa

        September 22, 2017 at 8:34 pm

        I couldnt get through the pictures. I hope the petition does help. Thank you for signing.

        Reply
    25. BWeaves

      September 22, 2017 at 12:40 pm

      5 stars
      I JUST GOT YOUR NEW COOKBOOK!!! YAY!!! Thank you so much. OK, back to reading it.

      Reply
      • Richa

        September 22, 2017 at 12:49 pm

        YAY!!!

        Reply

    Primary Sidebar

    Hi, I'm Richa! I create flavorful plant based recipes that are inspired by my Indian upbringing, including many gluten-free, soy-free, and oil-free options.

    More about me →

    Amazon // Barnes & Noble // BAM! // Chapter Indigo // International
    vegan richa cookbook flavor companion
    My exclusive 16 Spice Set
    Vegan Richa's Everyday Kitchen Cookbook Now Available everywhere where Books are Sold | VeganRicha.com
    Amazon // Barnes & Noble // BAM! // Chapter Indigo // International

    FOLLOW US

    • Bloglovin
    • Facebook
    • Instagram
    • Pinterest
    • RSS
    • Twitter
    • YouTube

    Vegan Richa 's Indian Kitchen Cookbook

    Amazon || Barnes & Noble || BAM! || IndieBound || Details & International

    Popular

    • 18 Best Vegan Recipes of 2022
    • Vegan Tofu Nuggets
    • Best Easy Vegan Recipes of 2021
    • Restaurant Style Aloo Gobi

    Amazon || Barnes & Noble || BAM! || Indigo || Book Depository

    Footer

    ↑ back to top

    About

    • Privacy Policy
    • Terms Of Use
    • Copyright and Disclaimers

    Resources

    • Indian dals/lentils names
    • Indian pantry
    • Our vegan journey
    • Vegan Substitutes

    Newsletter

    • Sign Up! for emails and updates
    • Facebook
    • Instagram
    • YouTube
    • Twitter

    Contact

    • Recipe Index
    • My Favorite Things
    • Advertise, Work With Me

    Cookbooks

    • Vegan Richa’s Indian kitchen cookbook
    • Vegan Richa’s Everyday kitchen cookbook 
    • Vegan Richa’s Instant Pot Book

    All content on this blog is owned by Vegan Richa LLC.  Links on some posts are affiliate links for e.g. we are participant in Amazon services LLC Associates program. Vegan Richa is monetized in part through the use of such affiliate links. More Details

    Copyright © 2021 Vegan Richa