vegan pesto alfredo

Those who are following me on Twitter know that I was in heaven a couple of days ago while making homemade pesto. I love, love, LOVE the smell of fresh basil and could stand there for hours picking it over and washing the leaves in preparation for recipes. I settled on a classic pesto recipe (sans cheese) in Mark Bittman’s How to Cook Everything Vegetarian, that made three batches of pesto which now sit in my freezer for future enjoyment.

I still had a few fresh basil leaves remaining so I wrapped those in a damp paper towel and stored them in the fridge bin until I came across the pesto alfredo recipe below. I was thumbing through old magazines, trying to clean out some of my house clutter when I found this yummy recipe in an old issue of Family Circle.  The original vegetarian recipe included butter, grated Parmesan cheese and cream cheese.  In an effort to eat more vegan, I subbed dairy-free versions of butter, parm and cream cheese and sprinkled in some chopped tomatoes. Hubby and I found it to be pretty good, with the diced potatoes adding a little something not found in traditional alfredo pasta dishes. Could definitely fall into that “comfort food” category.

Dairy-free Pesto Alfredo – makes about 6 servings

1 lb. whole wheat spaghetti

2 potatoes, peeled and diced (I used Yukon gold)

1 bunch fresh basil, cleaned and patted dry

1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil

4 tbsp Earth Balance

1/4 cup vegan parm (I used Galaxy Foods)

4 oz. vegan cream cheese (I used Vegan Gourmet)

2 cloves minced garlic (I used the jarred kind)

1/2 tsp salt

1/4 tsp black pepper

Cook pasta and potatoes in a pot of boiling water according pasta package directions, or about 10 minutes.  While the pasta and potatoes are cooking, add basil, olive oil, Earth Balance, parm, cream cheese, garlic, salt and pepper to a food processor, blending until smooth.  Once cooked, drain pasta and potatoes, reserving 1/2 cup of the cooking liquid.  Fold the sauce into the pasta and potatoes, along with the reserved cooking water, and serve!

If you happen to try this recipe, please leave a comment and let me know what you think!