Mary Berry’s spaghetti with peas and pesto recipe

Mary Berry calls this “a quick and easy midweek pasta dish”.

She says: “Adding peas to the pesto gives a lovely natural fresh flavour. Use fresh garden peas, if you grow them, instead of petits pois. We have used cashew nuts instead of pine nuts in the pesto to give creaminess to the sauce.”

Spaghetti with peas and pesto

Ingredients:
(Serves 4-6)

350g spaghetti

For the pea pesto:
250g frozen petits pois
115g unsalted cashew nuts
55g Parmesan, grated, plus extra to serve (optional)
2 large garlic cloves, halved
Large bunch of basil, roughly chopped
100ml olive oil

Method:

1. Cook the peas in a saucepan of boiling water for three minutes. Drain and refresh under cold water. Drain again.

2. Place half the peas in a small food processor and add the nuts, cheese, garlic and basil. Whiz until finely chopped. Slowly add the oil, a little a time, until you have a paste consistency. Season with salt to taste.

3. Cook the spaghetti in boiling salted water according to the packet instructions. Reserve 50ml of the pasta water before draining.

4. Place the pesto in a large non-stick frying pan, add the reserved peas and the cooked spaghetti and a little of the pasta water. Toss everything over a high heat until well coated.

5. Season well with freshly ground black pepper and serve with extra Parmesan, if liked.

Cook And Share by Mary Berry is published in hardback by BBC Books, priced £27. Photography by Laura Edwards. Available now.