Walnut and Spinach Pesto
This walnut and spinach pesto is a flavourful quick family favourite one. An easy way to add more greens to your everyday cooking.
Ingredients
For the Walnut and Spinach Pesto
- 40 g fresh basil
- 2 garlic cloves
- 50 g fresh spinach
- 70 g pecorino cheese
- 60 g walnuts toasted
- 80 ml olive oil
- 1 tbsp lemon juice
- salt and pepper to taste
For the Pasta Dish
- 320 g orecchiette pasta
- 4 ġbejniet
Instructions
- Start by toasting the walnuts. Let cool completely. In a mixer or mortar, crush the walnuts until they are evenly broken.
- Add in the pecorino cheese, garlic, basil leaves, spinach and lemon juice. Blitz until a paste starts to form.
- Add the olive oil and blend them together. If you want a chunkier pesto, as you can see in this recipe, the oil should be enough. However, if you want a smoother pesto, add more oil and blend them together for a longer period until you get a smooth and velvety texture.
- Once you almost achieve your desired consistency, season the pesto to taste with salt and pepper and blend for one last time.
- In a large pot, cook the pasta until al dente in salted water according to the instructions on the package.
- Once the pasta is cooked, drain it but set aside about 1/4 of a cup of the pasta water.
- Before serving the pasta, add the pasta to a pan with the pesto and the pasta water and mix well until it gets all creamy and thick.
- Place a ġbejna cheese in the middle of the plate and add the pasta around it. Drizzle some olive oil and lemon zest. Serve immediately.
Nutrition
Calories: 635kcal | Carbohydrates: 64g | Protein: 19g | Fat: 34g | Saturated Fat: 7g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 10g | Monounsaturated Fat: 16g | Cholesterol: 19mg | Sodium: 237mg | Potassium: 370mg | Fiber: 4g | Sugar: 3g | Vitamin A: 1780IU | Vitamin C: 7mg | Calcium: 256mg | Iron: 2mg