The time I spend in kitchen to cook dinner is getting lesser day by day.I do not know the reason I just feeling like getting away with very simple one or two dish for dinner.May be the weather,its only the start of February,already we are sweltering here :(. When I think of easy to cook recipes,I just cannot ignore pasta recipes. They are so easy to put together and filling.When fresh ingredients and whole wheat pasta is used it is very health too.Recently we visited an organic super market here in Chennai and I was really happy to find loads of farm fresh greens,veggies and many other ingredients.I purchased so many things like veggies,blackcurrants,herbal tea and a pack of whole wheat spaghetti was one among them.I was searching for a new recipe to cook this spaghetti and I remembered about this pesto pasta I read sometime ago.It was actually a cilantro pine nuts pasta,I changed it completely to match with the ingredients I had.I used almonds instead of pine nuts,I thought it will give a nice texture and I was not disappointed.This whole recipe takes flat 20 minutes and you have a wholesome dinner,filling and satisfying.Try out and lemme know :)
Cilantro almond pesto spaghetti recipe
Star ingredients:Cilantro,almonds and whole wheat spaghetti
Time:20 minutes
Serves:3
Ingredients:1 1/2 cup whole wheat spaghetti
6 cups water
Salt
For pesto
2 cups packed cilantro leaves
1/4 cup whole almonds
2 cloves garlic
1"inch ginger scrapped
1 teaspoon sugar
2 teaspoons lemon juice
2 green chillies
1/4 cup Sesame or olive oil
Salt
Method:
1.Boil 6 cups water along with salt.Add the pasta and cook till soft (Cook pasta according to package instructions)
2. Grind all the ingredients mentioned for pesto slowly in a food processor.Add oil as and when needed.If you feel the pesto is very tight add little more oil.Grind it smooth or coarse as per your taste.
3.Drain the cooked pasted and rinse under cold running water.
4.Combine the pesto with cooked pasta and mix gently.Adjust salt and serve hot.
Notes:1.You can use any kind of pasta in this recipe
2.You can use pine nuts/cashew nuts instead of almonds.I also think ground nuts will work.
3.If not using olive oil try using sesame oil
