Green Vegetable Penne Pasta with Pesto Sauce
Most pesto sauces stream in olive oil, so I try hard to find options to substitute for the sometimes overpowering olive oil. For this recipe, I found that vegetable broth works very well. Also, you can do any variation of vegetables. I think this dish is very tasty and pretty as a result of all the color from the veggies and pesto. Play with the recipe a bit and find your favorite combination of vegetables for your very own vegetable penne pasta with pesto! Make this for a dinner party or simply as a dish for your family on a weeknight. It is a fabulous dish!
That’s all it takes to have a healthy vegetable penne pasta with pesto. Let me know what kinds of veggies you like to use in this dish! If you liked this pasta recipe, you may also like our vegetarian lasagna or the roasted tomato and basil whole wheat pasta recipes!
This recipe was sponsored by Recipe Kingdom!
Ingredients
1 pound whole wheat penne pasta
1 bunch of asparagus
1 small zucchini
1/4 pound haricot verts (French green beans)
1 packed cup fresh spinach
1/4 cup pine nuts
1 cup basil leaves (about 20 leaves)
1 handful of fresh Italian parsley leaves
1 bunch of fresh tarragon, about 10 stems
2 cloves of garlic
1 lemon, zested
1/2 cup grated parmigiana reggiano, plus more for passing with the pasta
1/3 cup vegetable broth
Black pepper
Salt
Instructions
1
In a skillet, toast the pine nuts on high heat until they start to brown. This should take around 5 minutes, but make sure the pine nuts don’t burn. Let them cool a few minutes.
2
Place the nuts, basil, tarragon leaves, parsley, lemon zest, garlic, 1/2 teaspoon salt, and cheese into a food processor. Process and stream in the vegetable broth until it forms a pesto. You can use a little more broth if you need it. Reserve the pesto.
3
Heat a large pot of water to boil for the pasta.
4
Cut the asparagus spears into 1 inch pieces on the angle.
5
Cut the zucchini into 1/4 inch rounds.
6
Cut the tips off the green beans and cut into 1 inch pieces on the angle.
7
When the water begins to boil, salt the water (this is optional) and add the pasta. Boil for a total of 11 minutes or per the package instructions.
8
When there are 2 minutes left for the noodles to cook, toss in the asparagus, zucchini, and green beans, into the pot with the noodles cooking.
9
When the last 2 minutes are done, drain the noodles and vegetables into a colander.
10
Put the pasta mixture into a large bowl and toss it with the pesto. Adjust the salt and pepper to taste.
11
Serve with grated Parmesan.
Categories:Lunches & Dinners
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