Ellie’s pasta recipe is simple, quick and extremely scrumptious! When we tested it we were so surprised it took less than 20 minutes to prepare!

The salty sweetness of the sun-dried tomatoes, pungent fresh garlic and licorice-like, crisp basil provided a combo of flavors that even the kids loved! What an easy, delicious summertime pasta recipe! 20 minutes? Really? Yes!!!

Ingredients

• 12 ounces penne pasta
• 1 (8.5-ounce) jar sun-dried tomatoes packed in olive oil
• 3 garlic cloves
• Salt and freshly ground black pepper
• 1/4 cup pine nuts aka pignoli
• 1 cup (packed) fresh basil leaves
• 3/4 cup freshly grated Parmesan

Directions

1. Cook pasta in a large pot of boiling salted water until tender but still firm to the bite, stirring occasionally, about 8-10 minutes. Drain, reserving 1 cup of the cooking liquid.
2. Meanwhile, blend sun-dried tomatoes and their oil, garlic, salt and pepper; to taste, pine nuts and basil in a food processor or blender and blend until the tomatoes are finely chopped.
3. Transfer tomato mixture to a large bowl. Stir in Parmesan.
4. Add pasta to pesto in bowl and toss to coat, adding enough reserved cooking liquid to moisten.
5. Season  with additional salt & pepper, to taste and sprinkle with extra Parmesan and a drizzle of extra virgin olive oil.

Serves 2-4