If you’re a fan of pesto you’ll love this Farfalle with Hemp Seed Pesto. It is one of those perfect spring-summer dishes for when you are ready to start veering away from heavier winter foods and “spring” into lighter dishes.
What makes this pesto different, you ask? Well, for one it’s dairy-free. But don’t let that sway you away, it’s delizioso! And it has hemp seeds added for some extra nutrients and plant protein.
Hemp seed pesto, so delish!
Recipe Deets…
You probably know that traditional pesto is made with pine nuts, basil, garlic, evoo, and parmigiano reggiano. But we’re keeping this dish vegan. That said, you can add in some traditional parm regg or vegan parm if that’s your fancy.
For this pesto sauce you’ll need:
- pine nuts or almonds
- hemp seeds
- fresh basil
- lemon
- garlic
- extra-virgin olive oil
And of course you’ll need salt, but that goes without saying.
Serve this pasta hot or cold
For the nuts you should first lightly toast, because this brings out the flavor.
To toast nuts, line a small sheet pan with parchment baking paper and bake at 350° 8 – 10 minutes. If you are using almonds over pine nuts, go with the sliced or slivered almonds vs whole almonds with skins (which would make this pesto too chunky).
And for the hemp seeds you can leave them raw.
Have you ever had hemp seeds? Also known as hemp hearts, these little seeds are amazing. Small like sesame seeds, neutral in flavor, and packed with protein and nutrients.
Just three tablespoons of hemp seeds contain:
- 10 grams protein
- 20% RDI of iron
- 45% RDI of magnesium
- 100% RDI of manganese
- plus folate, vitamin B6 and more
Give the pesto a quick blend in a food processor
But, back to the recipe! Once you have your nuts, seeds and other pesto ingredients ready you just give them a quick whiz in the blender or a small food processor.
If you prefer pasta with more versus less sauce you can double the pesto recipe. As is this recipe makes 1/2 cup. Plus, having extra pesto in the fridge is always a good thing.
This pesto is good on more than just pasta, people! You can serve it with roasted veggies, spoon some into your grain bowl, top grilled seafood or meat (I’m lookin’ at you omnivores!). It’s even good as a falafel dip, sandwich spread, or topping for veggie burgers.
To assemble…
This is literally a two step recipe: cook your pasta, make your pesto. So once your pasta is cooked you just toss with the pesto.
Per the recipe below, I recommend cooking your pasta in generously salted water until just al dente. Drain, reserve a little of the pasta water, then toss pasta with sauce. You can add some of the reserved cooking water to thin out the sauce if desired/needed.
Optional ~ top pasta with extra toasted nuts, hemp seeds and petite basil leaves for garnish. Serve the pasta right away if enjoying warm, or chill in the fridge for a few hours for pasta salad.
Top with cheese if you like, vegan parm or parm reggiano would go great
If you make my Farfalle with Hemp Seed Pesto I’d love to see how it turns out! Tag me on Instagram with a pic or comment below.
Want more pasta? Check these recipes out…
Spaghetti with Mushroom Bolognese (vegan, GF)
Penne with Pistachio Pesto (vegan, GF)
| Prep Time | 15 minutes |
| Cook Time | 10 minutes |
| Servings |
servings
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- 8 oz uncooked farfalle makes 2 main or 4 side servings
- 3-4 cloves garlic peeled and chopped
- 1 cup packed fresh basil leaves
- 1 each lemon juiced
- 2 tbsp raw hemp seeds
- 1/4 cup toasted pine nuts or almonds if using almonds sliced/slivered are best
- 1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
- to taste pink salt
Ingredients
|
|
- cook pasta: bring a large pot of generously salted water to a boil and cook farfalle until al dente (reserve a little of the pasta water when draining)
- make pesto: in a blender or small food processor, whiz pesto ingredients (garlic through olive oil), season to taste with pink salt; recipe yields 1/2 cup of sauce, you can double recipe if you like a more “saucy” pasta
- to serve, toss warm pasta with sauce, adding a little pasta water if needed; serve right away or refrigerate a couple of hours to chill; you can garnish with petite basil leaves and/or nuts or hemp seeds
Recipe serves 2 as a small main, 4 as a side
Sauce makes 1/2 cup, you can double if you like more sauce
Original recipe created by Jerran Boyer
www.healthnutchefs.com