Summertime is pesto time thanks to my garden and its abundant basil. I am always looking for new ways to use pesto--some of my go tos are: Quick One Pan Dinner, Pesto Pizzas, Pesto Hummus (recipe coming soon), or tossed into salad dressing. My latest fave is this lovely lemony garden cornucopia. I use either zucchini zoodles or pasta noodles as a base, top them with steamed asparagus, peas, and broccoli as well as sautéed mushrooms and leeks, then pour over a creamy pesto sauce. Top it all off with a little lemon zest and vegan parmesan and you have a delicious and nutritious meal. If you want an extra protein boost, serve it with chickpea pasta or add chick peas to the dish.
Ingredients:
1 cup broccoli florets
1 bunch asparagus
1 cup green peas
1 carton mushrooms (any kind), sliced
1-2 leeks (sub shallots), chopped
2-3 zucchini, spiralized or 1 box linguine of choice (I like Explore chick pea)
Vegan parmasan
Sauce
1/3-1/2 cup vegan pesto--store bought or homemade (recipe below)
2/3-1 cup unsweetened soy milk
1 heaping tsp yellow miso paste
Zest from one lemon
Salt and pepper to taste
Optional: 1-2 tbsp nutritional yeast
Instructions:
Steam the asparagus, broccoli, peas (and any other green veggie you would like). Don't overcook-these are best al dente. Set aside.
Sauté the mushrooms and leeks in a little olive oil or broth until browned, about 5-7 minutes. Season with salt, pepper, and garlic powder. Set aside.
Spiralize the zucchini if you are doing zucchini noodles. Alternatively, cook the pasta noodles according to the package.
Place the sauce ingredients in a small pot and heat on medium low heat while whisking. Taste and adjust seasoning, adding more pesto, soy milk, or nutritional yeast as needed.
If using zucchini noodles, quickly sauté the noodles in a spritz of olive oil for about 2-3 minutes--don't over cook.
Assemble: Add all ingredients to the drained pasta or zucchini noodles and lightly toss. Top with lemon zest and vegan parmesan. A dollop or two of Kite Hill ricotta cheese is lovely too. Alternatively, place a bed of noodles in a pasta bowl and top with veggies then pour over desired amount of sauce.
Extra Lemony Pesto
4 cups basil, loosely packed
1/2 cup pine nuts (1/3 cup if you are cutting down on fat)
1/3 cup nutritional yeast
2-4 garlic cloves, depending on your garlic preference
Zest from one lemon
Juice from 2 lemons (about 1/3 cup)
1/4 tsp red pepper flakes
Salt and pepper to taste
Optional: 2 tsp olive oil
Place all ingredients in a cuisinart or blender and blend until smooth. Taste and adjust seasoning adding more lemon, nutritional yeast, salt, pepper as needed.
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