Day 9: Ramblings from my Kitchen: Basil Pesto Pasta
Note my fellow Blogoholics: I am gonna miss the Saturday post (*holds ears*). Just way to tired to be writing 2 posts today. So I am just gonna pick up from today. Thank you.. you guys are awesome! 😉
The foodie inside me is gonna come out right now and slurp all over the keyboard! 😉
I love Pasta. And if I haven’t said it before, I Love Pasta. I could eat it for breakfast, lunch, dinner, snacks, comfort food, happy food, sad food…any food! Therefore, my favorite part of spending time in the kitchen is – Conducting Pasta experiments. Some have excelled beautifully and some..well.. lets not go there. I had done an earlier Recipe post based on pasta as well. This particular recipe is my own! *pats back* Oh, and I also love to make accompaniments (apart from just garlic bread)..so I will give you a quick recipe of that too!
So coming back.. Here is my version of Basil Pesto Pasta (with a feisty twist!;))
Basil Pesto Pasta (makes for 2)
Ingredients:
- 500 gms – Whole wheat Fusilli Pasta (You can use Penne or Spaghetti)
- 1 large Green Pepper
- 1 large Onion – cut julienne
- 4-5 Cherry Tomatoes (optional)
- 1/2 cup Black Olives, pitted
- 3-4 Jalapenos – cut up into small pieces
- 5 large cloves of Garlic, mashed up
- Dried Herbs – Thyme, Oregano and Chilli Flakes
- Pepper
- Salt
- Cheese to grate at the top
- Olive oil to cook
- 1 large bunch of Basil leaves (you will get them at a supermarket)
- 1 bunch of Spinach leaves
- Olive Oil
- 3 cloves of Garlic
- Pepper
- Salt
- 3 tablespoons of lemon juice
- 2 large Lettuce leaves
- A handful of Beans, Carrots and 1 Zucchini
- 1 Potato – cut up in small bite-size pieces
- Two slices of Garlic bread or any other bread you like
- 1 Tablespoon of Mayonnaise
- 1 Tablespoon Mustard Sauce
- 1 Tablespoon Tomato Ketchup
- Wash the Basil leaves and Spinach leaves thoroughly.
- Blanch the Spinach leaves in boiling water for just about 4 minutes and let it cool in a bowl of ice-cold water (to keep its color and freshness)
- Put all of the ingredients – Basil leaves, blanched Spinach, crushed garlic, lemon juice, salt, pepper and 3 tablespoons of olive oil in the Food processor and blend! Your sauce is ready!!
The Basil Pesto paste
- Boil a pan full of water with salt in it. Add the pasta in it and cook it al dente (is firm, but not hard and not completely squishy). Put the pasta through the sieve and add a bit of olive oil to keep it moist.
- Put a fork in the Green pepper and place it on the Gas Stove for 5 minutes, turning it around on all sides, till the skin blackens. Take it off the gas and put into a bowl of cold water. Peel off the skin with the blunt side of the knife and cut into thin strips.
- In a nonstick pan, put a teaspoon of olive oil and put the crushed garlic in it. Add the Onions and let it get slightly pink.
- Add the green pepper, Cherry Tomatoes, Olives and Jalapenos and cook it for about 2 minutes.
- Pour the Basil Pesto Paste into the pan and let it cook. Add a little bit of warm water, if the paste is little too thick. (Tip: Adding cold water to an already cooking dish, makes it a longer cooking time and your dish could lose flavors.)
- Add the dried herbs, salt and lots of pepper and chilli flakes. Let it cook for another 2 minutes or so. Your Cooked Basil Pesto Sauce is ready!
- In a pan, add a bit of butter and saute the carrots, beans and zucchini with some pepper. Keep it crunchy!
- Boil the cut-up potatoes and add it to the carrots and beans in the pan. Done!
- Mix the mayonnaise, mustard sauce and tomato sauce with a little drop of olive oil to prepare the Accompanying sauce.
- Put a Lettuce leaf on the plate and put the sauteed veggies on it.
- Put the Accompanying sauce on the side and place garlic bread with it.
- Put the boiled pasta on the plate and pour dollops of the Basil Pesto Sauce on it (covering every inch of the boiled pasta)
- Grate a generous amount of cheese on it.
Voila!
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Ramblings of a Feisty Spirit 
This is a pretty detailed recipe and the process is also very nicely explained!!! Will try – someday 🙂
Pasta is like “Therapeutic food ” for me… never used tomatoes yet with pesto sauce.. should try one day.. ahhhh craving for pasta ..i want now 😉
I am disaster making any kind of pasta, so I settle down with ready made pasta with tastemakers. I have whole pack of Macaroni. Should try your recipe now soon.
must try it! Really simple it is. 🙂
Even i love pasta! but pity i dont love cooking. looking at so many cooks posting recipes, i am sure cooking would be fun!
Yum yum…I am going to try this soon
that sounds yumm, must try soon 🙂