lemon mint pesto pasta

i've been a way a while now! last week was the birthday week/spring break/rodeo time so it's been a little busy. i actually tried a juice cleanse this week and as a result have been craving some healthy but yummy food. so i went combing through my cookbooks (one of which i'll write more about later!) and saw a recipe for lemon mint pesto. this was perfect because our mint is growing like crazy and i have a couple lemons left over from the cleanse. we had some whole wheat thin spagetti so i made some of that to go with it. i wanted some more veggies and protein so i found some frozen broccoli in the freezer and some pine nuts in the fridge. all put together it was so light and summery! perfect considering the sun just came out from behind all of the rain clouds. ever heard that saying march either comes in like a lamb and goes out like a lion or the reverse? yeah well march is definitely going out like a lion around here!

lemon mint pesto
2 cups loosely packed fresh mint leaves
2 large garlic cloves
1/8 tsp salt
1/4 tsp lemon-pepper
~2 tbsp evoo
1 tsp fresh lemon juice

put garlic in the food processor and process until chopped. add mint leave, salt and lemon pepper and process until finely chopped. add the lemon juice and pulse to combine. while the processor is going add about 2 tbsp of extra virgin olive oil until pesto becomes smooth. put in the fridge to let the flavors combine while everything else is cooking.

broccoli with lemon
if using fresh broccoli get a pan and put the broccoli in, and add water about a fourth way up the pan. cover and cook until tender. or however you usually cook your broccoli or veggies.
i used frozen and i just microwaved them according to the directions.

either way you do it when you are done add about a tbsp of lemon juice.

whole wheat pasta
cook the pasta according to the directions. salt the water before you add the pasta though!

toasted pine nuts
put the pine nuts in a pan and heat on the stove. keep an eye on them and keep them moving, because once they start to brown they go quickly.

when pasta is done, drain it and put it in a big bowl and add half of the pesto toss to combine. add the broccoli, the pine nuts, the rest of the pesto, and mix well. taste and check it, i added some more lemon juice add some salt or pepper if you feel the need. a little Parmesan cheese if you want and voila!from Vegan Italian by Donna Klein