Sun Dried Tomato Pesto Sauce for Pasta
I grabbed my food processor and ground up the fresh basil leaves, cloves of garlic, and pine nuts. I also added black pepper, olive oil, garlic salt, olive oil, Parmesan and Romano cheeses, and sun-dried tomatoes. This was a fun recipe to use up all my basil leaves in. I cooked up the sauce, pasta, and mushrooms and the result was a yummy rich sauce. The dish was delicious with a glass of red wine on the deck. This meatless sauce is packed with powerful intense flavor. Meat could easily be added to the top of this pasta dish. I must say this sauce is best when eaten fresh. A great vegetarian dish for summer nights.
Ingredients
- 8 ounces baby bella mushrooms sliced
- 4 cups fresh basil leaves ground
- 3 cloves garlic ground
- 1 teaspoon garlic salt
- 1/4 teaspoon black pepper fresh ground
- 1 1/4 cup olive oil
- 1 3/4 ounces pine nuts ground
- 1 cup Parmesan and Romano cheeses grated
- 8 ounces sun dried toamtoes from a jar
- 1 pound penne pasta cooked
- 1/4 cup grated parmesan cheese for topping
- 1 Tablespoon olive oil
Instructions
- Grind the following in a food processor: 4 c. fresh basil leaves, 3 cloves garlic, 1 3/4 ounces pine nuts. Add all to a large saucepan.
- Add the following to the saucepan: 1 tsp. garlic salt, 1/4 tsp. black pepper, 1 1/4 c. olive oil, 1/4 tsp. black pepper, 1 c. grated Parmesan and Romano cheeses, 8 ounces sun-dried tomatoes from a jar. Stir all together and bring to a boil.
- Reduce heat to medium-low and simmer for about 15 minutes, stirring occasionally.
- Saute mushrooms in 1 Tbsp. olive oil in a separate frying pan.
- Cook penne pasta according to the direction on the package. Drain.
- Build by adding pasta to plates, topping with sauce, cooked mushrooms, and grated Parmesan cheese to taste.
Tried this recipe?Let us know how it was!