Whole Wheat Pasta with Broccoli and Walnut Pesto

Preparation Time: 10 minutes
Cooking Time: 20 minutes
Difficulty: 1
Spiciness: 0
Number of Servings: 4

A healthy meal that wont take more than half an hour to prepare, providing you with fiber, omega-3 fatty acids, and numerous antioxidants.

Place a pot with a generous amount of salted water on the stove. While waiting for the water to boil, rinse the broccoli florets and peel and roughly chop the garlic. Add the broccoli florets to the boiling water and blanch them for 3-5 minutes, then remove them with a slotted spoon and cool them in an ice bath to retain their vibrant green color. Once cooled, drain the florets thoroughly.
Add the pasta to the same pot where you blanched the broccoli and cook it for the time indicated on the package. Stir the pasta frequently while cooking to prevent it from sticking.
Rinse the basil under running water and shake it dry, then roughly chop the walnuts. In a food processor, add 200g of blanched broccoli florets, 2/3 of the chopped walnuts, olive oil, garlic, basil, and lemon juice. Blend the ingredients until smooth, then add salt, pepper, and grated Parmesan. Mix again until you get a thick and creamy sauce without large chunks of broccoli or walnuts.
Drain the cooked pasta and transfer it to a bowl. Pour the prepared pesto over the pasta and mix well to ensure the sauce coats the pasta evenly. Then, add the reserved broccoli florets and chopped walnuts. Serve the pasta on plates and enjoy the meal immediately.