This is a great “pesto” substitute if you don’t eat dairy.

The lemon gives the pasta a little “zing” that you’d typically get from the Parmesan cheese in regular pesto.

We skip the pine nuts, too, because I had a really bad experience many years ago where I lost my sense of taste for an entire week after eating some “bad” pine nuts!

Sure, you could add a different nut to make it more like pesto, but we enjoy it just fine like this.

Basil Pasta Recipe

Serves 4 (as an entree) – – or serves 6 as a side dish

INGREDIENTS: 

2 cups fresh basil leaves, packed VERY tightly
1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil
1/2 tsp unrefined salt
1/2 TBSP fresh lemon juice
2 tsp raw honey
3 medium cloves garlic

16 ounces pasta of your choice (we prefer Trader Joe’s gluten-free rice pasta as shown below)

DIRECTIONS:

Toss everything (except the pasta) into a food processor or blender, and process until combined (stopping to scrape the sides a few times as needed).

Makes 3/4 cup – 1 cup of sauce. This sauce freezes well for later use, too, so feel free to make extra while you’ve got your blender dirty! 🙂

Meanwhile, cook the pasta according to package directions; and drain/rinse.

I like to cook the Basil Sauce a bit before tossing it with the pasta. So, while the pasta is in the strainer, add the sauce to the empty pasta pan. Cook for a few minutes over medium heat. Then, add the pasta and toss to combine.

Enjoy! And be sure to check out our RECIPES PAGE for more delicious recipes!!!!