Mom's Pesto Recipe

I've also had requests for my mom's pesto pasta recipe from Luke's birthday party..... here it is straight from the chef herself... just add your choice of pasta and you have a delicious dish! We use gluten free rice pasta, but any will work. Thanks Mom! she didn't know I'd be posting her directions on my blog when she sent me the email... ;-)

Spinach Pesto

Here is what I put in it. Frozen spinach, I thaw it and squeeze all the liquid out really well. I used the frozen bag from trader joes.
In my Cuisinart I put garlic (as much as you like), lemon juice (as much as you like from a fresh lemon), Parmesan cheese, (I usually use pecarino cheese but I was out of it, Parmesan has a milder flavor). I usually just add as much as I want for flavor and texture, I also added a few basil leaves, but you could also use Italian parsley leaves too.

After you get it all in there add a little salt and a good olive oil. Blend while adding more olive oil until it is all blended finely. I usually store it in a jar for up to 2 weeks.... just make sure you cover it in olive oil to keep it fresh. Each time I take some out for pasta or pizza I add more olive oil to top it off in the jar. Pine nuts are really good in it too. I didn't put any in the kids dish because of possible allergies. But if you can, try pine nuts for a great roasted flavor and it adds a little protein to the sauce. I buy pine nuts at trader joes and roast them myself in a nonstick skillet over low heat YUMMY! Good luck and have fun! You can't mess this up its all to your taste.


***Note from Suzanne - The "adult" version used primarily basil instead of the spinach, and included pine nuts. There was also diced chicken, and roasted pepper, eggplant and tomato included. ***