Putting my basil plant to good use! Such an easy, quick meal; perfect for my Meatless Mondays!
Time: 15-20 mins
Ingredients:
- 1 cup pasta of your choice (I used a gorgeous colorful Fettuccine)
- 1 tablespoon salt for the pasta water
- 2 cups (4 handfuls) fresh basil leaves, washed and dried completely
- 1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
- 1/2 cup pine nuts (you can sub walnuts)
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon black pepper
- 2 cloves garlic
- A few shreds of fresh parmigiano-reggiano (parmesan) cheese (optional)
Recipe:
- Bring 2 cups water to a boil with 1 tablespoon salt.
- Add pasta and cook al dente (your pasta package should give timing instructions based on the thickness of the pasta, mine took 3 mins). Make sure it's al dente because pesto is a thick sauce, so you don't want the pasta to be too soft when you mix the sauce in or it will get mushy.
- Place the basil, garlic, olive oil, pine nuts, salt and black pepper in a food processor. Pulse until finely ground.
- Strain the pasta and return it back to the pot while it's still hot.
- Mix the pesto into the pasta until well-coated, careful not to mush it.
- Use tongs to plate the pasta and grate the fresh cheese over it (if desired) using a potato peeler.
- Enjoy!
