Caesar Pesto Pasta

By Angela-4

Ingredients

• Salt and coarse black pepper
• 1 pound spaghetti
• 1 cup outer romaine lettuce leaves or lacinato kale leaves, coarsely chopped and packed
• 1/3 cup grated Pecorino Romano cheese (about a generous handful), plus more for serving
• 2 cloves garlic, halved
• 1 lemon, juiced
• 1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
• 1 teaspoon anchovy paste
• 1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
• 3 tablespoons pine nuts, toasted
• 1/3 cup extra virgin olive oil, divided

Preparation

Step 1

Bring a large pot of water to a boil, salt it, add the spaghetti and cook until al dente. Drain, reserving 1 cup of the pasta cooking water.

Using a food processor, puree the romaine (or kale), cheese, garlic, lemon juice, mustard, anchovy paste and Worcestershire; season with pepper. Add the pine nuts and about 1/4 cup EVOO and process. Stream in additional EVOO to form a thick pesto; season with salt.

In a pasta bowl, combine the pasta, pesto and reserved pasta cooking water; toss to combine. Serve with more cheese.