Pesto Sauce Pasta

  Easy home made pesto sauce. Pesto sauce is a pasta sauce made with fresh basil leaves, pine nuts, olive oil and cheese. Variations can be made in substituting other nuts for pine nuts, replacing basil with spinach or mint or parsley etc. You can also make this sauce vegan by avoiding cheese or butter. My son's most favorite pasta sauce is pesto sauce. Below is the recipe for how I make pesto sauce for his school lunch box . 

INGREDIENTS:

Fresh Basil leaves -  250 to 300 gms

Pine Nuts - 1/4 cup

Extra virgin olive oil - 1/4 cup

Garlic clove - 1 small

Black pepper powder - 1 teaspoon

Grated parmesan cheese ( optional) - 1/4 cup ( I usually don't add cheese for school lunchbox, as they don't refrigerate the lunch box in school. So chances are there for the food to be spoiled. Don't add cheese, if you are making it for lunch box)

Italian seasoning  - 1/2 teaspoon

Butter - 1 tablespoon

Salt - as required

Lemon juice- few drops 

METHOD:

1.  Wash the basil leaves well in a running cold water. In a mixer, add basil leaves, pine nuts, olive oil, garlic, pepper powder, cheese and grind to a smooth paste. Your pesto sauce is ready.

2. Boil water in a big bowl and add  penne pasta ( See the pasta package for cooking time of penne pasta) . Penne pasta approximately take 10 - 12 minute of cooking in hot water. Filter the water , and also wash the cooked pasta in running cold water . It prevents the pasta from further cooking.

3. In a pan, add 1 tablespoon of butter. Add the cooked pasta and also add required salt and stir fry for a minute. Now add the pesto sauce. Also add 1/2 teaspoon of Italian seasoning powder and mix well. No need to heat the sauce for too long. In just 1 to 2 minutes, switch off the stove. Add some lemon juice and mix well. Pesto sauce pasta is ready !!!

Note:

1.  If you don't have pine nuts, replace it with walnuts or almonds  or pistachios.

2. If you don't have basil leaves, replace it with spinach or mint or cilantro . Or you can also add half basil leaves, and half spinach or avocado or raw zucchini etc.