Presto Pesto Pasta

Say that 5 times fast! :) This is a great weeknight meal. I am submitting this recipe to Presto Pasta Nights, hosted by Once Upon a Feast. I admit that this dish isn't very healthy, but I love pesto and this recipe looked like it would be wonderful. Well, I was not disappointed. It is a rich, creamy sauce and the pesto just puts it over the top. This would have been great with the shrimp that is called for in the recipe, or even chicken... but I made this after a long day at work and did not want to take the time to thaw anything out. I saved even more time by using canned tomatoes instead of dicing fresh tomatoes. So even though the recipe calls for shrimp, I've tagged this post vegetarian because it can easily be made vegetarian by omitting the shrimp.

I was in such a rush to make dinner that I forgot to add the tomatoes initially! It was only after I started taking some pictures that I realized something was missing! So that is why you don't see any tomatoes in the photo below :)


This makes quite a bit of sauce, so I am going to try to freeze half of it for later. Not sure how it will taste after it has been frozen, but next time I may just halve the recipe.

Pesto Cream Sauce
from Allrecipes

1 (16 ounce) package linguine pasta (I used angel hair)
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 small onion, chopped
8 cloves garlic, sliced
1/2 cup butter
2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
2 cups milk (I used skim)
1 pinch salt (I used much more salt, to taste)
pinch pepper (I used about 1/4 tsp)
1 1/2 cups grated Romano cheese
1 cup prepared basil pesto
1 pound cooked shrimp, peeled and deveined (I omitted these)
20 mushrooms, chopped (I omitted these)
3 roma (plum) tomato, diced (I used one 14.5 oz can of diced tomatoes, drained)

Bring a large pot of lightly salted water to a boil. Add pasta and cook for 8 to 10 minutes or until al dente; drain.

Heat olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Saute onion until tender and translucent. Stir in garlic and butter, and saute until garlic is soft and fragrant, about 1 minute. Dissolve flour in milk, then stir in. Season with salt and pepper, and simmer 4 minutes, stirring constantly. Add cheese, and stir until melted. Stir in pesto. Add shrimp, mushrooms and tomatoes. Cook 4 minutes, or until heated through. Toss with pasta until evenly coated.

Yield: 6 Servings