Fresh Pesto and Zucchini Pasta
Every year I plant basil in my pots and Tower Garden and my favourite thing to do is make pesto. Pesto is always made to taste, based on the ingredients at hand. So adjust the ingredients to your taste.
Most pesto recipes call for Parmesan cheese, some use Romano but I use Nutritional Yeast. This keeps the dish perfect for those who are Vegan. Many basil pesto recipes call for pine nuts which I prefer but you can use any nut you like. Many like walnuts because both these nuts have an oily texture. Some prefer almonds. For those with a nut allergy, it will taste wonderful without nuts also.
Some like to sprinkle Parmesan or Romano Cheese on top but a wonderful alternative is Hemp Hearts.
Cooking should be fun and full of flavours that your enjoy!
Basil is a powerfully aromatic herb and a little goes a long way. You can mellow the flavour of your pesto by adding fresh baby spinach leaves.
Combine basil, garlic, Nutritional Yeast, olive oil, and pine nuts, lemon zest, salt and pepper in the bowl of a food processor or blender. Blend to a smooth paste.
Fresh Zucchini Pasta
Slice the zucchini into thinner strips resembling spaghetti. I love using my “Paderno – Turning Slicer above.
Heat olive oil in a skillet over medium heat; cook and stir zucchini in the hot oil for 1 minute.
Add water and cook until zucchini is softened, 5 to 7 minutes.
Add Pesto
Add Small Tomatoes
Toss
Serve Warm!
Pesto Place the basil leaves and pine nuts into the bowl of a food processor and pulse a several times. Add the garlic pieces and Nutritional Yeast or Parmesan or Romano cheese and pulse several times more. Scrape down the sides of the food processor with a rubber spatula. While the food processor is running, slowly add the olive oil in a steady small stream. Adding the olive oil slowly, while the processor is running, will help it emulsify and help keep the olive oil from separating. Occasionally stop to scrape down the sides of the food processor. Stir in some salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste. Toss with pasta for a quick sauce, dollop over baked potatoes, or spread onto crackers or toasted slices of bread. Pesto is so versatile!
Toss with pasta - Zuccini, Kamut, Spelt...
Spread on chicken or fish
Add to baked potatoes
Spread on homemade pizza
Spread onto crackers
Spread on toasted slices of bread.Zuccini Pesto Pasta
Print Recipe
Ingredients
Instructions
Notes
No Comments