Pesto Pasta with Slow Roasted Tomatoes recipe. This recipe is easy to make but is full of flavour. It is the kind of dish where the ingredients speak for themselves and is so tasty that it will become a weekday staple.
Homemade pesto is always far better than anything shop bought, in fact, I would not buy pesto ever again after knowing how good homemade pesto is. I have also made this pesto recipe lighter than many other recipes as I have used less oil and lemon juice. The lemon juice adds freshness and acidity which balances well against the rich flavour of pine nuts and Parmesan.
I have served this Pesto Pasta with slow roasted tomatoes. Cherry tomatoes, seasoned with fennel seeds and chilli flakes, are slow roasted at a low temperature for 2 hours until sweet. This intensifies their fresh flavour and make them perfect to use in Pesto Pasta. They may take a bit of time to make, but they add such a burst of flavour that makes it so worth it. My tip is to make extra, pop into a jar seeped in olive oil and keep in the fridge to add to other dishes for a real flavour punch. They would be so lovely in a bruschetta. If you really don’t have time to make them, use sun-dried tomatoes and add some fennel seeds and chilli flakes when frying the spinach.
Pasta
Pasta is probably my favourite food with Spinach & Ricotta Cannelloni. being my all time favourite dish. Although I have not done so in this recipe, I often make my own pasta from scratch. If you want to try out homemade pasta, simply mix together 100g ’00’ flour and 1 large egg until a dough forms. Knead briefly into a ball and allow to set for half an hour in the fridge. Roll out using a pasta machine, or a rolling pin and strong arm, and cut into your desired shape. I have used tagliatelle in this recipe but the traditional pasta to go with pesto is trofiette as it’s shape allows the pesto to stick. When you nail pasta making, try out my recipes for Chilli Crab Ravioli with Lemon Butter Sauce or Mushroom and Truffle Ravioli.
Contact
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Pesto Pasta with Slow Roasted Tomatoes
Ingredients
- 250 g Cherry tomatoes (I use the tomatoes on the vine for better flavour)
- 1 tsp Fennel seeds and chilli flakes
- 30g Fresh basil (Two packets)
- 50 g Pine nuts
- 75 g Parmesan cheese, grated
- 2 tbsp Extra virgin olive oil
- 1 Lemon
- 2 Cloves garlic, crushed
- 200g Pasta (I used tagliatelle but penne or trofiette also work well)
- 1 large handful Baby spinach
- Salt and pepper
- Olive oil
Instructions
- Heat the oven to 140C. Half all of the tomatoes and lay on a baking tray, cut side up. Drizzle with a little oil, season with a little salt and sprinkle over the fennel seeds and chilli flakes. Slow roast for 2 hours.
- To make the pesto, toast the pine nuts over a medium heat until lightly browned. Add the pine nuts, basil, parmesan, garlic, extra virgin olive oil, the juice of the lemon and a little salt and pepper to a blender. Blitz until smooth.
- Once the tomatoes are cooked, boil the pasta in salted water until cooked. Reserve a cupful of the cooking water.
- In a frying pan, add a drizzle of olive oil and saute the spinach until wilted. Stir through the pasta and the pesto and add a little pasta cooking water (a couple of tablespoons at a time) until the pesto coats the pasta nicely. Add the tomatoes and stir through. Serve the Pesto Pasta with Slow Roasted Tomatoes and top with a drizzle of olive oil.
