{recipes} Spinach Pesto Rotini

My mom makes pesto all summer long when fresh basil leaves are blooming in her garden. I hope to continue in her tradition and grow my own basil this year as well, but in the meantime, I've been using baby spinach in lieu of basil and I'm so happy with the delicious outcome that I thought I'd share my recipe.

I love pasta with pesto on a hot summer night - it's so much more refreshing than tomato sauce, it's ready in minutes, and there's practically no cooking required! I can spend the entire day at the beach with my family and still manage to have dinner on the table before my hungry husband arrives home from work in the evening. ;)

This recipe yields two generous servings.

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{Spinach Pesto Rotini}

a handful of baby spinach leaves
3 T parmesan cheese
1 T olive oil
1/8 c. pine nuts, optional
1 garlic clove
1 plum tomato, diced
1/4 lb. fresh mozzarella, cut into cubes
1/2 lb. rotini

Prepare pasta as directed. Drizzle with olive oil and stir in 1 T. of the parmesan cheese. Combine spinach, 2 T. parmesan cheese, olive oil, pine nuts, and garlic in a bowl and blend with a handheld food processor, pulsing for 5-10 seconds at a time, stirring in between pulses. Repeat until it is the consistency of a paste. Stir pesto into pasta and mix well. Fold tomatoes and mozzarella cheese into pasta and gently combine. Garnish with a few chopped baby spinach leaves & a sprinkling of parmesan cheese on top.

{enjoy!}