Barefoot Bloggers - 3 P's Please

Another fun week with the Barefoot Bloggers - Alexander is doing the cooking today, so I'll let him do the narration for the pictures:

Hi, this is Alexander - and this is so cool, I got to check out the chop and grind buttons on this chopper thing - I put in pesto, spinach, peas, oil, parmesan cheese and mayo (mayo?) :

It was fun watching it go around and around - especially making the machine change directions:

Then I stirred the pasta with the sauce. Sabrina couldn't try it because she's allergic to nuts.

Ok, here I am eating it. My mom really liked it. It was okay, not my favorite. I like pasta with butter and olive oil. And pepper. And cheese. But I'm glad I tried it.

Here's the recipe if you want to try it.

Pasta, Pesto and Peas - Ina Garten

3/4 pound fusilli pasta
3/4 pound bow tie pasta
1/4 cup good olive oil
1 1/2 cups pesto, packaged or see recipe below
1 (10-ounce) package frozen chopped spinach, defrosted and squeezed dry
3 tablespoons freshly squeezed lemon juice
1 1/4 cups good mayonnaise
1/2 cup freshly grated Parmesan
1 1/2 cups frozen peas, defrosted
1/3 cup pignolis (pine nuts)
3/4 teaspoon kosher salt
3/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
Cook the fusilli and bow ties separately in a large pot of boiling salted water for 10 to 12 minutes until each pasta is al dente. Drain and toss into a bowl with the olive oil. Cool to room temperature.
In the bowl of a food processor fitted with a steel blade, puree the pesto, spinach, and lemon juice. Add the mayonnaise and puree. Add the pesto mixture to the cooled pasta and then add the Parmesan, peas, pignolis, salt, and pepper. Mix well, season to taste, and serve at room temperature.
Pesto:
1/4 cup walnuts
1/4 cup pignolis (pine nuts)
3 tablespoons chopped garlic (9 cloves)
5 cups fresh basil leaves, packed
1 teaspoon kosher salt
1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1 1/2 cups good olive oil
1 cup freshly grated Parmesan
Place the walnuts, pignolis, and garlic in the bowl of a food processor fitted with a steel blade. Process for 15 seconds. Add the basil leaves, salt, and pepper. With the processor running, slowly pour the olive oil into the bowl through the feed tube and process until the pesto is thoroughly pureed. Add the Parmesan and puree for a minute. Use right away or store the pesto in the refrigerator or freezer with a thin film of olive oil on top.