Thrifty gamechanger: How to make pesto green bean spaghetti

With just a few ingredients, you won’t believe how easy it is to prepare this spaghetti dish from scratch, says Prudence Wade

An indulgent midweek dinner that won’t break the bank (Ellis Parrinder/PA)

Our take on a north Italian pasta alla Genovese, this pesto and green bean spaghetti is a thrifty game-changer,” say Kate and Kay Allinson from Pinch of Nom.

“Using just a few simple ingredients and one saucepan, you won’t believe how easy it is to prepare this spaghetti dish from scratch. By combining Parmesan with garlic, basil and zesty lemon juice, we’ve recreated a luscious green pesto sauce… Don’t forget to save your pasta water – it gives every twisty forkful an even silkier texture.”

Pesto green bean spaghetti

Serves: 4

Ingredients;

150g dried spaghetti

170g new potatoes, sliced

100g green beans, trimmed

60g fresh basil

4 garlic cloves, peeled

30g Parmesan cheese, finely grated

Juice of 1 lemon

Method:

1. Add the spaghetti and new potatoes to a large saucepan of boiling water. Cook for eight minutes until the potatoes and spaghetti are nearly done. Add the green beans and cook for another four minutes.

2. While the spaghetti is cooking, add the basil, garlic, Parmesan cheese and lemon juice to a food processor. Blitz until smooth.

3. Once the spaghetti, potatoes and green beans are cooked, drain (reserving a little of the cooking water).

4. Add the spaghetti, potato and green beans back to the pan and pour over the pesto mixture. Add one tablespoon of the reserved pasta water, stir and add a few extra tablespoons of water as needed (we added three tablespoons of the reserved pasta water to coat our pasta, but it depends on how thick your pesto is. Start with one tablespoon and go from there). The pesto should coat each spaghetti strand. Serve.

‘Pinch Of Nom: Budget’ by Kate and Kay Allinson (Bluebird, £17.99).