I cooked this cashew pesto pasta over the weekend for a very big, very hungry, and very lovely crowd at Balance Festival. I love this recipe for weekday lunch boxes, speedy dinners, or even to take along to picnics when the weather permits! When I made this recipe at Balance I added some asparagus (which was completely delicious and I thoroughly recommend) but if’s not in season or you don’t have any around you can sub in any other veggie of your choice – some roasted broccoli would be a god shout I think.
Cashew pesto pasta
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Ingredients
- 200g of penne pasta (or pasta of choice)
- handful of frozen peas
- FOR THE PESTO
- 2 handfuls of fresh basil
- 2 cloves of garlic, chopped
- 2 tbsp of cashew nuts
- 60ml olive oil
- Juice of a lemon
- 2 tbsp water
- 2 tbsp of grated parmesan (or nutritional yeast to make vegan)
- Salt and pepper to season
Instructions
To make the pesto – blitz the cashews first in a blender until chunky texture achieved (not powder/flour consistency).
Add all the remaining pesto ingredients to the blender and whizz until the desired texture achieved. Add salt and pepper to taste.
Cook the pasta as per packet instructions (usually 8-10 mins) and add the frozen peas in for the last 4 minutes. Drain the pasta and peas and stir the pesto through.
Serve with a little grating of parmesan or nutritional yeast on the top, if you like.
