Mushroom Pesto Pasta

Mushroom Pesto Pasta with freshly made spinach pesto and buttery, garlic mushrooms. Fresh, tasty and easy to make you can have this on your table in just 30 minutes!

Course Dinner

Cuisine Fusion, Italian

Prep Time 15

Cook Time 15

Total Time 30

Servings

Calories 670kcal

Author Michelle Alston

Equipment

Blender or food processor

Ingredients

For the spinach pesto

120 g baby spinach (4 cups)
60 g vegetarian parmesan cheese (½ a cup + 2 tbsp) finely grated
45 g pine nuts (⅓ of a cup)
30 g fresh basil leaves (1 ½ cups)
2 cloves of garlic minced
60 ml extra virgin olive oil (¼ cup)
2 tablespoon freshly squeezed lemon juice
¼ teaspoon sea salt
¼ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

For the mushrooms

500 g chestnut/brown mushrooms ( 4 cups) wiped dry then sliced
50 g butter (3 ½ tbsp) I use real salted butter
2 cloves of garlic minced
1 tablespoon fresh thyme leaves
¼ teaspoon sea salt

For the pasta

350 g linguine (12oz) You can also use, fusilli or penne.
A good pinch of salt
70 g sundried tomatoes ( approx ¾ of a cup) cut into strips

For serving

Grated vegetarian parmesan cheese
Pine nuts
Basil leaves
Extra virgin olive oil optional
Cracked black pepper

Instructions

Make the pesto

Add the spinach, basil, pine nuts, grated vegetarian parmesan and minced garlic to a food processor and blend until everything is roughly blended.
With the food processor running slowly pour the extra virgin olive oil into the processor. Once the oil has been incorporated stop blitzing.
Add the lemon juice, salt and pepper then blitz one more time very briefly.
Set aside until you are ready to use it.

Cook the mushrooms

Melt about a third of the butter in a large frying pan, add half the mushrooms. Cook over medium heat until browned, flip the mushrooms using the pan. Once the mushrooms are brown transfer them to a bowl. Repeat with the remaining mushrooms.
Once all the mushrooms are cooked return the mushrooms in the bowl to the pan along with 2 cloves of minced garlic, 1 tablespoon of fresh thyme leaves and a pinch of salt and black pepper.
Toss the pan once or twice until the garlic is cooked, this should only take a minute or two.

Cook the pasta

Cook the pasta according to the packet instructions.
Drain the pasta.

Assemble the dish

Add the pesto to the pasta and toss well.
Next, add the sundried tomatoes and toss carefully.
Serve the pasta in bowls, top with the mushrooms, some grated vegetarian parmesan, some extra pine nuts and some freshly cracked black pepper. Finish with a drizzle of extra virgin olive oil if you wish.

Notes

Spinach - Fresh baby spinach is best for this pesto, frozen spinach will not work here.
Mushrooms - Chestnut or brown mushrooms will give you the most flavour but white button mushrooms will work well too.
Pasta - We like linguine for this but fusilli or penne work really well too. I would use whatever pasta you have, except for tortellini.
Leftover pasta - if you have leftover pasta you can transfer it to a jar with a tight-fitting lid, pour a little olive oil over it then keep it in the fridge for up to a week. You can use it for pasta or we like it drizzled on toasted sourdough or on fried eggs.
Storing/reheating/freezing - I don't recommend freezing this dish, you can freeze leftover pesto if you need to though. Any leftovers can be stored in the fridge and reheated on the hob, you may find a slight difference in texture though. You can eat this dish cold if you wish.
Nutritional Information - is approximate and is calculated using an online tool, it is a guide only, it does not include any extra toppings.
Measurements - I weigh all my ingredients using an electric scale, all measurements are metric. Cup measurements are approximate.

Nutrition