Coconut Milk Pesto Pasta

Why you'll love Coconut Milk Pesto Pasta:

Just throw all the ingredients into a food processor to make the sauce!

The addition of the coconut milk helps the sauce become more creamy.

The creaminess of the sauce sticks to the pasta perfectly.

This pasta dish comes together in less than 30 minutes!

Ingredients:

• dried fusilli pasta
• fresh basil leaves
• garlic clove
• pine nuts
• fresh grated parmesan cheese
• extra virgin olive oil - Good quality olive oil is key!
• unsweetened canned coconut milk (full fat or light)
• fresh lemon juice
• salt & pepper to taste
• reserved pasta water

A complete list of ingredients, amounts and instructions is located on the recipe card below.

While the water comes to a boil, start making the pesto.

Add basil leaves, garlic clove, pine nuts, parmesan cheese, olive oil, coconut milk and lemon juice to a food processor.

Process until creamy.

Remove the blade from the machine and stir in salt and pepper to taste.

Add the dried pasta to the boiling water and cook according to the package's instructions.

Before draining the pasta, reserve 3 tablespoons of the starchy water.

Drain the pasta once cooked.

Place the drained pasta back into the pot.

Pour the pesto sauce over the pasta.

Add 1 tablespoon of the starchy water at a time while you stir the pasta with the pesto sauce over very low heat.

You may not need all 3 tablespoons of the water. I typically use about 1 - 1 ½ tablespoons.

Just stir for about 30 seconds - 1 minute until your desired consistency is reached.

Recipe pro-tips:

Make sure you use good quality extra virgin olive oil for this recipe. It makes the biggest difference!

Don't use carton coconut milk (or another non-dairy milk) because it's typically diluted with water. It's not as creamy as the canned version. Stick with canned coconut milk for this recipe.

You don't need a fancy food processor to make this recipe. I used THIS one. You can even use a blender if you don't have a food processor.

Double or triple this recipe for a crowd!

The small amount of reserved pasta water helps everything congeal together. Don't skip that part.

You can use whatever pasta shape you like for this recipe. I recommend fusilli because the pesto gets into the nooks and crannies.

Recipe variations:

If you're gluten-free, use gluten-free pasta for this recipe.

If you're vegan, use nutritional yeast instead of parmesan cheese.

Swap out pine nuts for pistachios or walnuts for a different flavor.

Use half arugula and half basil for a more peppery taste.