Pea & Leek Pesto Pasta

I've been obsessed with this recently. I love peas so much.

**The recipe includes a lower energy variation below!

Ingredients

• Pasta - any kind, I like penne and shell shapes the most!
• 3 tbsp green pesto - homemade or storebought. I prefer fennel, followed by basil and parsley
• Olive oil
• ~7cm of a leek, sliced
• 1/2 red chilli, finely chopped, or an eyeball amount of chilli flakes
• A handful of frozen peas
• 1.5 tbsp nooch
• 1/2 tsp black pepper, ground
• 1/3rd lemon, juiced

Method

Cook pasta according to package instructions.

In the meantime, saute chilli and leeks in a deep pan/wok over medium heat until fragrant. Add the pepper and peas, and let cook until the peas defrost. Add the pesto sauce, a tabblespoon of pasta water and lemon juice and leave on low heat, stirring occasionally.

Once the pasta is cooked, drain it and plop it all into the pan. Stir in the nutritional yeast, combine with the sauce, and serve!

**For a low functioning day, I skip the chilli and just dump the peas and leeks in to cook with the pasta. I add the pepper, lemon, nooch and sauce into the pasta pot once the pasta's cooked. This way it generates less mess, but loses some of the fragrance and spicy kick :p