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Saturday, October 12, 2019

Pesto Pasta with Spinach and Avocado Recipe

I stopped liking pesto because it's so greasy and gross. This is a nice and light pesto recipe. Mainly uses spinach and a small amount basil and oil. May want to adjust garlic amount. Otherwise is delicious and light with red wine vinegar. Would be good with chicken.

This is the real deal, truly amazing flavor. I followed the recipe exactly and since I do not have a food processor, I made this in my Kitchen Aid blender. I had to add all of the oil before turning it on with this method. I was pleased it worked just great. I used pine nuts and had no trouble finding them, I didn't think they were terribly expensive as some others have mentioned.


Pesto Pasta with Spinach and Avocado Recipe




INGREDIENTS

12 ounces of fusilli pasta
Salt
2 cups packed (about 2 1/2 ounces) chopped fresh baby spinach leaves
6 to 8 Tbsp prepared basil pesto
1 to 2 Tbsp red wine vinegar
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper (more or less to taste)
1/2 cup peas (defrosted if frozen)
1 whole ripe (but not overly ripe) avocado, peeled and chopped

INSTRUCTIONS
  • Bring a large pot of salted water (3 quarts water, a tablespoon of salt) to a rolling boil. Add the dry pasta to the boiling water, stirring occasionally  to keep it from sticking to the bottom of the pot. Cook in rapidly boiling water until al dente, cooked through, but still a bit firm to the bite. The amount of time will depend on your package of pasta, anywhere from 8 to 12 minutes.
  • Place the chopped spinach at the bottom of a large bowl. When the pasta is done, scoop out about a half cup of the pasta cooking water and set aside. Drain the pasta and put the hot drained pasta on top of the chopped spinach in the bowl. Toss to mix. The heat of the pasta will help wilt the spinach leaves.
  • Stir in the pesto, so that the pasta is well coated. Add in a little of the pasta cooking water you set aside to loosen the pasta a bit. Sprinkle in 1 tablespoon of the red wine vinegar, a half teaspoon of salt, and a half teaspoon of black pepper.
  • Stir in the peas, and gently fold in the chopped avocado. Taste and add more salt, vinegar, and or pepper if needed.
  • Serve slightly warm or at room temperature.



Pesto Pasta with Spinach and Avocado Recipe
4/ 5
Oleh