Pesto is one of those magical green sauces that can be used on just about everything and make it taste better. I love changing up the ingredients and substituting arugula for basil or almonds for the pine nuts. Here, we use kale and walnuts. This is a vegan recipe if you leave out the shrimp! Any shape pasta can be used. My kids love orecchiette, but as I had spaghetti, that is what we used. If you are trying to cut carbs, spaghetti squash makes a nice substitute.
Ingredients
5 oz. baby kale
½ cup olive oil, plus one tbsp. extra
1/3 cup walnuts
2 tsps. lime juice
1 tsp. lime zest
Sea salt
Fresh ground pepper
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 lb. large peeled, deveined shrimp (I usually buy them like this to save time)
Spaghetti or roast spaghetti squash
Crushed red pepper to serve
1. Add all the ingredients for the pesto (kale, walnuts, ½ cup olive oil, lime juice and lime zest and blitz in a food processor. Add salt and pepper to taste.
2. In the meantime, boil your spaghetti or roast your spaghetti squash in a 400 F oven for about 50 minutes. Reserve ½ cup hot pasta water.
3. Place 1 tbsp olive oil in a large frying pan. Add 2 cloves minced garlic and heat for 30 seconds over medium high heat. Add shrimp and cook for about 3 minutes until cooked through and pink.
4. Toss cooked spaghetti or squash with cooked shrimp in the same pan. Add pesto and the ½ cup water from boiling the pasta. Toss together. Serve with crushed red pepper.
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