Parsley pesto fettuccine

Tam West

This recipe can easily be varied. Try adding wilted spinach, silverbeet or rainbow chard, steamed sweet stem broccoli or broccoli florets, lightly cooked mushrooms, cooked chicken meat, shredded, cooked seafood, cooked diced bacon.

Ingredients

1 cup	Flat leaf (Italian) parsley, well-packed (Main)
2	Garlic cloves, crushed
2 Tbsp	Pine nuts, toasted for added flavour
1 small	Lemon, juice only
½ cup	Olive oil
¼ cup	Parmesan cheese, freshly grated, plus extra for serving
400 g	Fettuccine, use up to 500g, dried, or use tagliatelle (Main)

Directions

1. Place the parsley, garlic, pine nuts and a good pinch of salt in a small food processor and process until well chopped. Add the lemon juice, then drizzle in the oil, stopping to scrape down the sides of the processor 2-3 times. Stir in the parmesan cheese and taste for salt.
2. Cook pasta in a large saucepan of salted boiling water until al dente (test by carefully removing a piece of pasta and tasting — it should feel firm, but not have a chalky centre).
3. Drain pasta, keeping back about ¼ cup of the cooking water to thin down the pesto if you want to. Place cooked pasta in a large bowl and toss through enough parsley pesto to flavour. Grate over extra parmesan.

Make a change

Add wilted spinach, silverbeet or rainbow chard, steamed sweet stem broccoli or broccoli florets, lightly cooked mushrooms, cooked chicken meat, cooked seafood, cooked diced bacon