Homemade Tortellini with Zucchini Basil Pesto
Ingredients
Tortellini dough
- 400 grams all-purpose flour, plus additional for dusting
- 150 ml warm water
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
Pesto
- 1 medium zucchini
- 2 cups loosely packed basil
- 1/4 cup pine nuts
- 2 garlic cloves
- 1/4 cup grated vegetarian Parmesan or nutritional yeast
- 1/3 cup extra-virgin olive oil
- salt and pepper to taste
Preparation
Steam the zucchini until tender.
In a large bowl, mix flour and salt together.
Add about half of the water and gradually incorporate the remaining water while working from the outside of the bowl towards the center, kneading for about 10 minutes to form a dough ball.
Wrap the dough in plastic wrap and refrigerate for one hour.
Make the pesto by adding all the ingredients except the olive oil into a blender and process until smooth.
With the blender still running, slowly pour in the olive oil and blend until combined, then set aside.
On a lightly floured surface, roll the dough out until it is about 0.5 cm thick.
Using a small circular cookie cutter, cut out rounds of dough.
Fold each round in half to seal tightly.
Bring the two ends together, seal again, and fold up the edge to form tortellini.
Bring a large pan of water to a boil and boil the tortellini for 3-5 minutes until they float to the surface.
Drain the pasta, reserving half a cup of cooking water.
Heat olive oil in a frying pan over medium heat, add the cooked tortellini and pesto, and toss until well combined, adding reserved water if needed.
Serve warm, garnished with fresh basil leaves and pine nuts.
