Homemade Pesto Spaghetti with Peas & Courgette

Ingredients:

(Recipe serves 4)

For the pesto:

• 3 garlic cloves
• 40g basil
• 30g pine nuts
• 30g spinach
• 45g parmesan, grated
• 2 tbsps olive oil
• 3/4 lemon, juiced
• 3 tbsp water

For the pasta:

• Light oil spray
• 300g mushrooms, sliced
• 200g courgette (approx 1 large), sliced
• 200g frozen peas
• 220g cherry tomatoes, quartered
• 300g wholewheat spaghetti

Recipe:

1. Start by putting all the ingredients for the pesto (apart from salt and pepper) in a food processor. Blitz this until all ingredients are finely chopped and combined. Taste for salt and pepper – it’s important to taste as the parmesan is already quite salty. Set aside your homemade pesto to add in later.
2. Now, boil the spaghetti according to the packet instructions. When the pasta has 6 minutes left, add your frozen peas to the pan to boil.
3. Meanwhile, in some light oil spray, fry the mushrooms and courgette for 10 minutes until softened and almost cooked. Now add the cherry tomatoes and cook for a further few minutes – just enough so the tomatoes are soft but not mushy!
4. Drain your spaghetti and peas then add to the pan with your vegetables. Turn off the heat and stir well to mix all the ingredients together. Now stir in the pesto and serve with fresh basil leaves and extra parmesan to grate on top!