Creamy Pesto Pasta Without Cream

This dreamy pesto pasta uses an easy, fresh pesto and no addition of cream to make a luscious and crave-able sauce perfect for any night of the week.

5 from 3 votes

Servings 4

Prep Time 10

Total Time 20

Bring a large pot of heavily salted water to a rolling boil. Add your pasta and cook for 2 minutes less than the package suggests - until just al dente.
While the pasta is cooking, add the pine nuts to a cold, dry frying pan. Set the pan over medium heat and toast the nuts, tossing frequently, until browned and golden - only about 2 minutes. Be careful not to burn as this can happen quite quickly.
Add the toasted pine nuts to the bowl of a food processor along with the basil, garlic and parmesan cheese. Pulse a couple of times, just until the ingredients are incorporated and the basil and pine nuts are roughly chopped.
With the machine running, slowly drizzle in the olive oil until well incorporated and the pesto is relatively smooth. Taste to adjust for seasoning, adding salt and pepper to taste.
Add the pesto to a large skillet and set over medium-low heat. Pour over 125ml (1/2 cup) pasta cooking water and whisk to combine. Add the cooked and drained pasta (making sure to retain some of the cooking water) to the skillet and stir to coat in the sauce.
Cook the pasta in the sauce, stirring constantly, until it coats the noodles and is thick and glossy, about 2-3 minutes. Serve immediately, topping with more parmesan cheese if desired.