Walnuts are less expensive and easier to find than pine nuts and I think they taste even better in pesto. Spinach linguine keeps this easy pasta recipe a lovely shade of green. My recipe for Spinach Linguine with Walnut Pesto was first developed for this Refinery29 article.
Servings: 2
Walnuts are less expensive and easier to find than the traditional pine nuts and I think they taste even better, plus they're loaded with healthy fats. Spinach linguine keeps the pasta a lovely shade of green.
Ingredients
For Pesto
- ½ cup chopped walnuts
- 2 cups loosely packed fresh basil
- ½ cup good quality olive oil
- ½ cup grated Parmesan cheese
- 2 cloves garlic minced
- ½ teaspoon salt
For Pasta
- 1 pound spinach linguine
- 1 cup prepared walnut pesto from recipe above
- 1 cup Parmesan cheese plus more for serving
- 1 teaspoon salt for the pasta water
- salt and pepper to taste
Instructions
- Process all of the pesto ingredients in a food processor until well combined.
- Cook the pasta according to package directions.
- Drain, but do not rinse the pasta, this will reserve a little bit of the pasta water in the sauce.
- Return to the pot and stir in the pesto and Parmesan cheese, add salt and pepper to taste.
- Garnish with a few small basil leaves if you have any left over and serve with a sprinkle of parmesan cheese and fresh ground pepper on top.
- Save any extra pesto in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to a week.
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