Wednesday, October 28, 2009

Eating Better - New Recipe Tonight


_
I've been trying to expand my cooking repertoire of healthier, good tasting, more veggies, less meat dishes. So tonight I'm trying out -- Whole-Wheat Pasta with Pumpkin-Seed and Spinach Pesto. I've had something similar to this before, and liked it, so we will see how it goes.
_
Ingredients
_
Makes 6 servings
_
1 pound dried whole-wheat fusilli pasta
1 cup hulled pumpkin seeds, toasted
1/2 cup fresh flat-leaf parsley
1/4 cup coarsely chopped fresh chives
1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
1 garlic clove
1 3/4 teaspoon coarse salt
1 teaspoon finely grated lemon zest
2 1/2 ounces baby spinach, packed (2 1/2 cups)
Freshly ground pepper
3/4 cup part-skim ricotta cheese, for serving
Tomatoes, cut into wedges, for serving (optional)
_
Directions
_
Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Add pasta, and cook until al dente. Drain, reserving 1/2 cup cooking liquid.
_
Meanwhile, combine toasted pumpkin seeds, parsley, chives, oil, garlic, 1 teaspoon salt, the lemon zest, and 1 cup baby spinach in a food processor. Season with pepper, and pulse until well combined.
_
Toss pasta with pesto mixture. Add reserved cooking liquid, and mix until pasta is well coated. Fold in remaining 1 1/2 cups baby spinach. Sprinkle with remaining 1/2 teaspoon salt. Divide among 6 bowls. Top each with a dollop of ricotta, and season with pepper. Serve with tomato wedges if desired.
_
Per Serving
538 Calories
16 g unsaturated fat, 10 mg cholesterol
64 g carbohydrate, 635 mg sodium
19 g protein, 8 g fiber
_
(Photos Courtesy of Jupiter Images)

4 comments:

Megan said...

This sounds so delicous! I love pesto from basil, but love the idea of this more seasonal version with spinich. Thanks for sharing!

Krissy | Paper Schmaper said...

sounds yum! i think i'll put it on next week's menu! thanks for sharing.

Raru said...

Sounds very delicious. I will have to try it :)
Thanks for sharing!
Raru
79ideas.org

Erin @ SYL: Slipcover Your Life said...

Such a yummy recipe!!!

Related Posts Plugin for WordPress, Blogger...