Fresh homemade spinach green pasta salad

Step 1

Steam spinach and drain thoroughly to get rid of any excess water then chop or blend spinach very finely.

Step 2

Mix the spinach, eggs (it's better if they are room temperature) and flour into a bowl or blender.

Step 3

When the ingredients are well mixed then you will have a beautiful green pasta dough. Turn it out onto a board and begin kneading the dough (alternatively you can use a mixer with a dough hook), until the dough is smooth and elastic. If it sticks to your hand when touched then add a little more flour and knead till smooth.

Step 4

Separate the dough into 5 or 6 small balls and cover with cling film to chill in the fridge for 30 minutes.

Step 5

Once chilled, roll out each ball till flat enough to feed into a pasta machine on level '0'.Continue feeding it through '0', folding it in half then feeding it through repeatedly until a regular shape. Make sure to sprinkle lightly with flour to stop it from sticking.

Step 6

Once regular then feed it through levels 2 and 3 till smooth. Working your way towards level 4 , which is the ideal spaghetti size (if you are using an atlas machine).

Step 7

You can then hang to dry for 1-2 hours and store in jars if you aren't wanting to eat it straight away. This can be stored for up to a month. I have a pasta hanging apparatus but feel free to use a few clean metal clothes hangers off of kitchen cupboards if that's all you have laying around.

Step 8

to prepare the pesto - place the pistachios, basil and garlic into a blender and lightly blitz. You want it to stick be a bit chunky so don't blend till completely smooth then add in parmesan.

Step 9

With the blender running, slowly drizzle in the oil to combine then add salt, pepper and lemon juice to taste.

Step 10

To cook the pasta simply place in boiling water till tender (usually only a few minutes).

Step 11

Meanwhile sauté the vegetables in a pan with a little oil, till tender.

Step 12

For the kale simply add a large handful of kale, 1 crushed garlic clove, some lemon juice and a drizzle of oil into a zip lock bag and massage until the kale softens and is completely coated with the dressing.

Step 13

When ready to serve combine kale, vegetables and pasta together. Can be eaten warm or served as a cold green pasta salad. And P.S. for those of you who still aren't convinced about making your own pasta but want all the benefits of the green veggies then why not try my Courgetti recipe with a home-made pesto, that can easily be tossed with extra green veg.