Broccoli Pesto Healthy Pasta Recipe
If you’re a pasta lover, you need to make this Broccoli Pesto Healthy Pasta Recipe. It’s hands down one of my favorites and it will soon be yours! A fragrant broccoli pesto infused with garlic, olive oil and basil, dolloped over a quick pasta sauté with sun-dried tomatoes, mushrooms, more garlic, and pine nuts.
Ingredients
For the pesto
- 1 cup frozen broccoli florets thawed
- 1 clove garlic
- 1/2 lemon juiced
- 1/8 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon thyme leaves
- 2 tablespoons fresh basil
- 1/3 cup olive oil
Pasta:
- 1 lb fettuccine pasta cooked according to package directions
Sauce:
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 2 garlic cloves minced
- 1/2 cup mushrooms sliced
- 1/2 cup kale chopped
- 1 tablespoon thyme leaves
- 1/2 cup sun-dried tomatoes
- 1 pinch salt and black pepper
- 1 pinch red pepper flakes (optional)
Sprinkling:
- 1/3 cup toasted pine nuts
- 1/3 cup grated parmesan cheese (Or Vegan Cheese)
Instructions
-
While the pasta is cooking, make the broccoli pesto by blending all ingredients in a food processor until smooth. Taste and adjust seasoning.
-
Make the Sauce by heating the olive oil in a sauté pan, then add the minced garlic and sliced mushrooms. Sauté for 2 minutes, add in the kale, thyme and sun-dried tomatoes with salt, pepper, and red pepper flakes for another 2 minutes. Turn off the heat.
-
Once the pasta is ready, remove it from the hot water (reserving at least 1 cup of the pasta water) and add the pasta into the mushroom pan.
-
Toss the pasta well with the mushroom mixture and then add in the reserved pasta water gradually ( 1/4 cup at a time, while tossing with every addition) until your sauce is the desired thickness.
-
Then add in the broccoli pesto in dollops over the pasta, scatter some toasted pine nuts and your choice of cheese. Serve and enjoy! :)
Recipe Notes
- Cook your pasta according to package directions, but check it a minute or two earlier, to make sure it's still al dente.
- Make sure not to brown the garlic too much, as this leads to bitterness.
- When assembling the dish, add the hot pasta water very slowly, stirring in between, to avoid a runny sauce.