Oil-free and Healthy Spinach, Almond Pesto

Today was one of those days where inspite of working from home I hadnt cooked anything through the day. Surviving on cereal for breakfast and Einstein Bros Bagels for lunch we reached dinner point around 8 PM. That time of the day with a hungry kid is not the time to make a staple rice rasam meal. It had to be a quick fix one pot kind of meal. And so I went through the refridgerator and decided on making a simple pasta. Pasta though quick to make takes a good toll on prep time especially if you want to combine it with healthy vegetables. All the cutting and sauteing and cooking can get to you sometimes. I spotted a bunch of spinach bought and forgotten at the far end of my fridge and decided to do a pesto.

T decided to lend a hand but changed his mind and undertook the making of a salad accompaniment. While the spaghetti boiled towards al-dente, the pesto was ground to a paste and 20 minutes later a two course meal was ready.

Avocado which I seem to have readily available these days is an excellent and nutritious replacement for grease in some recipes. The creamy texture it lends to any dip or condiment never lets you miss the oil which might have otherwise been in it.

Oil-free and Healthy Spinach, Almond Pesto

Servings: Makes enough for 2 adults

Prep Time: 10 minutes Cook time: 4 minutes (not included pasta cooking time)

Ingredients

1/2 bunch Spinach1/4 cup almonds
4 pods of Garlic1 Avocado1 tsp (or more) Black Pepper
1/2 small lemon

Some waterSalt to taste

Instructions

1. Wash the spinach leaves and microwave on high for a minute till soft. Alternately cook on the stove for around 5 minutes with a 1/4 cup of water. Cook spinach to tender.
2. Grind together cooked spinach, garlic, almonds and avocado flesh scooped out. To this add salt to taste, pepper and freshly squeezed lemon juice. Add tiny amounts of water as required to make a paste.
3. Scoop dollops of the ground pesto onto the cooked pasta and serve warm.

Whole wheat Spaghetti with Kale-Walnut Pesto

I have a confession. It is only over the past year that I have had to cook full time. In order to satiate the lazy person in me, I have gotten habituated to cooking all meals of  the day in the morning. It does require quite a bit of time management and also involves a lot of dashing around in my teeny-tiny kitchen. The hubby does not dare get in my way during the whole ordeal. Over the past couple of weeks however, with the beginning of the new year, old habits are being broken and being replaced by late rising in the mornings. This however gives rise to grumpy realisations at 7 in the evening that the family needs to be fed and the vessels are empty. So I have been unleashing a myriad of easy to make, yummy to eat food. On one such night where I had a fridge stocked with a lot of greens I decided to give a try to making a pesto. 

A pesto simply put is a puree of greens, nuts, garlic, salt, pepper and oil. The classic combination would have spinach and pine nuts in it.  

A wholesome simple meal, easy to make and easy to eat. Enjoy!

Whole wheat Spaghetti with Kale and Walnut Pesto

Servings: Makes enough for 2 adults
Prep Time: 15 minutes Cook time: 15 mins

Ingredients

1/2 bunch Kale (I used Baby Kale)
1/2 Big Onion or 1 medium one (I used the yellow kind)
1 Tomato
1/2 cup walnuts
6 pods of Garlic
6 tsp Olive Oil
Some water
Salt to taste
1 tsp (or more) Black Pepper

Instructions

1. Thoroughly wash Kale leaves, remove all the hard stem and coarse chop the leaves . Boil for around 5-6 minutes till tender. I boiled it to make it tender but probably coud be omitted. 
2. Heat a frying pan over medium heat and toast the walnuts stirring it constantly. Should be done in about a couple of minutes.
3. Grind the cooled kale leaves with the walnuts, garlic pods, salt and pepper to a paste. Add 3 tsp of Olive oil and give it another churn in the blender
4. Cook the spaghetti according to the instructions on its pack till al dentè in water with a pinch of salt.(Al dentè: cooked but firm to the touch, not mushy). 
5. Chop the onions and tomatoes into 1 inch pieces.
6. Heat a hard bottomed vessel on medium high heat and add 3 tsp of Olive oil. Add onions to the heated oil and fry till translucent. Then add the tomatoes and sautee till it gets cooked. To this add the pesto and stir for a minute. 
7. Switch off the stove and add the cooked spaghetti and mix well
8. Serve warm