Tuesday, January 4, 2011

Pasta, Pesto, and Peas

This recipe is from Ina Garten and I "veganized" it. The changes are few, but I warn you, taste as you go! I played a little with the amount of oil on both the pasta and in the pesto. 

And if you have a vegan pesto that you're crazy about, please post it. I would love to try it! It's so nice to taste something this fresh in the dead of winter, and what's better than a good pesto!

Prep: 20 min
Cook: 12 min
Total: 32 min

Ingredients


  • 3/4 pound whole wheat fusilli pasta
  • 3/4 pound whole wheat bow tie pasta
  • 1/4 cup good olive oil
  • 1 1/2 cups pesto
  • 1 (10-ounce) package frozen chopped spinach, defrosted and squeezed dry
  • 3 tablespoons freshly squeezed lemon juice
  • 1 cup Vegenaise
  • 1 1/2 cups frozen peas, defrosted
  • 1/3 cup pine nuts
  • 3/4 teaspoon kosher salt
  • 3/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

Directions

Cook the fusilli and bow ties separately in a large pot of boiling salted water for 10 to 12 minutes until each pasta is al dente. Drain and toss into a bowl with the olive oil. Cool to room temperature.
In the bowl of a food processor fitted with a steel blade, puree the pesto, spinach, and lemon juice. Add the vegannaise and puree. Add the pesto mixture to the cooled pasta and then add the peas, pignoli, salt, and pepper. Mix well, season to taste, and serve at room temperature.

Pesto:


  • 1/4 cup walnuts
  • 1/4 cup pine nuts
  • 3 tablespoons chopped garlic (9 cloves)
  • 5 cups fresh basil leaves, packed
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • 1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
  • 1 - 1 1/2 cups good olive oil
Place the walnuts, pine nuts, and garlic in the bowl of a food processor fitted with a steel blade. Process for 15 seconds. Add the basil leaves, salt, and pepper. With the processor running, slowly pour the olive oil into the bowl through the feed tube and process until the pesto is thoroughly pureed. Use right away or store the pesto in the refrigerator or freezer with a thin film of olive oil on top.

Notes: Air is the enemy of pesto. For freezing, pack it in containers with a film of oil or plastic wrap directly on top with the air pressed out.

Once again, the pic isn't mine. My camera just couldn't get a good picture.



5 comments:

myguetschow said...

Chemo,
Thank you so much for your kind words. I visited you!!! I found a beautiful photo of a sunset. Amazing! Thank you!

Elizabeth said...

have you tried gluten free girl's kale pesto? it's amazing. obviously, leave out the cheese... it's divine. the quinoa prep is tasty as well. (http://glutenfreegirl.com/quinoa-with-spring-vegetables-and-walnut-kale-pesto/)

myguetschow said...

Elizabeth!

Thank you for reading and posting a comment!! I WILL try that pesto! And thank you for sharing the link. I've never been to her website, so it will be fun for me to look around. Are you gluten free yourself?

Elizabeth said...

Not gluten free - just have plenty of loved ones who are. (For my bday party I baked three cakes, just so everyone attending could enjoy cake with me (one full fledged for me, one gluten free, and one eggs/dairy/gluten free). I love cooking, and I love cooking for unique needs - it is challenging! But the look on my friends faces are totally worth it when I say, "Of course you can eat that!". And I am looking to move more toward a plant based diet once I have my second baby in March - hence trolling about for vegan recipes!

myguetschow said...

Dear Elizabeth,

It sounds like you have a lot of fun cooking... so do I. And congratulations on the birth of your second child. Motherhood is the best... agree??

Anyway, I'm so happy you found my blog. I will enjoy touching base with you, and I'm looking forward to hearing all about the new little one.

I will be making the recipe you suggested and once I do, I'll come back and tell how we liked it. Somehow I think we will. Thank you again for sharing a small part of your world with me. If you find anything else "out there" that might be of interest... please let me know. Take care...