Thursday, November 5, 2009

Spinach Artichoke Pesto Pasta

Okay, those of you who like your recipes will not enjoy this one. I measured not a thing.

I was inspired by Rachael Ray while I was still in bed this morning, so you might have more luck finding her recipe.

Follow me if you dare! (You can keep up, I promise.)


I started by browning a can of quartered artichoke hearts that I drained the water out of. A little bit of oil helps the process.


In my new food processor (oh, hello!), I pureed probably 2/3 of a bag of baby spinach and a small handful of fresh mint with about a half cup of vegetable stock, a couple of spoonfuls of chopped garlic, a spoonful of roasted almonds, and a handful or so of parmesan cheese. I added salt and pepper to taste. And... let's be honest... I added some more garlic. And cheese.


Once the spinach pesto tasted good, I dumped it in with the browned artichoke hearts and allowed the pesto and artichoke to get to know each other.

Did I mention that I was boiling whole wheat penne at the same time? Well... I was. But I'm sure you weren't surprised.


The last step was to toss the pasta and pesto together. Let me just say that this pesto was fab and really easy to whip together. The artichoke hearts bring a slight bite to the dish and the overall flavor is light and fresh. Paired with Three Rivers, this pasta made my Sunday night.

How did you ring in November? For some reason, I've been asking people about November a lot these days. So... I'll ask you too. How is November treatin' ya?!

6 comments:

Evan said...

Like a bitch: tons of work and a head cold to boot.

On the plus side, Thanksgiving soon!

Anonymous said...

November has given me a cold - so therefore November pretty much sucks so far. On a positive note your pasta and pesto sounds delicious - I need to stop buying premade pesto.

Kate said...

So far November has been awesome. Being 25 is awesome too.

Ash said...

November got too cold too fast!!

I'm liking this pasta dish, gotta love artichokes!!

Amanda said...

Lots of colds. What gives? It sounds like Kate's November wins.

Amber said...

wowza. i cannot wait to have a food processor, for serious.