Pesto Fettuccine with Poached Egg
and artichokes / white beans
There's no doubt that you'll get plenty of greens in this flavorful pasta that includes basil pesto and baby spinach. A poached egg on top creates a natural rich sauce as it blends with the pasta.
Ingredients
- Pine nuts - 1 Tbsp (sub walnuts)
- Pasta, fettuccine - 8 oz (sub spaghetti)
- Lemons - 1, wedges
- Artichoke hearts - 8 oz, chopped (look for these in jars, cans, or frozen)
- Beans, navy or cannellini (14 oz / 397 g) - 1 can, drained and rinsed
- Eggs - 4
- Vinegar, red or white wine - 2 tsp
- Oil, olive - 1 Tbsp
- Baby spinach - 4 oz
- Basil pesto (ingredients listed separately) - 1/2 cup
- Pine nuts - 2 Tbsp (sub walnuts or pecans)
- Garlic - 1 clove, peeled
- Cheese, parmesan (opt) - 1 oz, cut into large pieces
- Basil leaves, fresh - 1 1/2 oz
- Lemon juice - 2 tsp
- Oil, olive - 3 Tbsp
Nutrition Facts
Prep
- Toast pine nuts - Toast nuts (portions for pasta and pesto) in a dry skillet or frying pan until fragrant and golden, 3 to 4 minutes. (Can be done up to 5 days ahead)
- Make pesto - (Double if making Wednesday’s meal.) Peel garlic cloves. Place nuts (portion for pesto), garlic, parmesan cheese (if using), basil leaves, and lemon juice in a food processor. Pulse until all ingredients are well chopped. With food processor running, drizzle in olive oil (portion for pesto) until smooth. (Add some additional olive oil if needed to help everything blend.) Season to taste with some salt and pepper. (Can be done up to 5 days ahead)
- Pasta - Cook pasta according to package directions. If making ahead, toss pasta with some oil to help prevent sticking. (Can be done up to 5 days ahead)
- Lemons / Artichoke hearts - Slice lemons into wedges. If using jarred or canned artichokes, drain and rinse them; if using frozen, defrost. If artichokes hearts are in large pieces, roughly chop them. (Can be done up to 2 days ahead)
- Beans - Drain and rinse.
- Eggs - Crack each egg into a small ramekin or teacup. (This makes it easier to transfer the eggs to hot water quickly so that they cook evenly.)
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Make
- Fill a saute pan for eggs with water. Add vinegar and some salt. Bring water to a boil.
- While water is coming to a boil, heat a wok or large skillet with oil (portion for pasta) over medium heat. Add artichoke hearts and spinach and saute until spinach is wilted. (To speed things up, you can cover the pan with a lid for a minute or two.)
- To vegetables add beans and pasta and saute until everything is heated through, 2 to 3 minutes.
- Stir pesto into pasta until evenly combined (remember to reserve half the pesto if doubled). Set pasta aside, covered to keep warm.
- Return to the boiling water for eggs. Reduce heat to bring the water to a low simmer. Gently tip each egg into simmering water so that none are touching. Simmer eggs to your desired degree of doneness (for cooked whites and soft yolks, this should take 4 to 5 minutes; remove one of the eggs and test it if needed).
- Use a slotted spoon to move cooked eggs to paper towel-lined plate.
- Divide pasta between serving plates and top each serving with a poached egg. Season eggs with some salt and pepper. Top with nuts (portion for pasta) and serve with lemon wedges on the side. Enjoy!
Nutrition Facts
Reviews
Ratings
Most Helpful
We really enjoyed this. I made my regular pesto (1/2 c basil, 2 1/2 cups spinach) and used pasta water to help the sauce “stick”. Left out the spinach from the pasta. I find the ounce measurement odd for the basil - I tried to weight my basil but found it was easier to use a large cup measure and loosely pack it.
1 Helpful29 reviews
I’d never made zucchini noodles before, so I was pleasantly surprised! I did use pesto I already had but it was made with similar ingredients. The flavors blended together really well!
0 HelpfulWe didn’t love this, and maybe it was just our taste preference. We used store bought pesto so maybe that was why, but the flavors didn’t come together well.
0 HelpfulStore bought pest, and added italian seasoned ground turkey instead of the beans. I poached my first eggs ever! Feels really good.
0 HelpfulDelicious but the zoodles released a lot of liquid during sautéing making the dish runnier than I’d like. I’ll make this again but will probably sauté the zoodles in a separate pan and add the spinach in at the very end to just wilt it. I poached an egg for myself but my SO doesn’t eat eggs so I cooked off a chicken breast for his. I’m glad I did the egg for me, it added an interesting sauce element to the dish that made it almost carbonara-like.
0 Helpfulused left over store bought pesto to save time. so definitely quick and easy. the taste but not as filling as i had ecpected.
0 Helpful