Phew! Today’s dish is a mouthful! Really the noodles and the Tuna are just add ons but oh my goodness that pesto… You best have some self control with this pesto. It is quite honestly the BEST PESTO I HAVE EVER HAD. Ever! And the pesto on it’s own is vegan! Hooray!

On a whim, as usual, I purchased a couple bags of fresh basil… cause you know. It smells good and stuff. It sat in my fridge for a couple days staring at me scornfully because I knew I had no idea what I wanted it for. So I guess I’m not that creative for thinking – Pesto! But it totally gets better. Then I saw that I had sundried tomatoes laying around… Magic. Sundried tomatoes are a great little tool to have in your pantry but whole30ers beware… it was REALLY hard for me to find some without preservatives, mystery ingredients, added oils etc. So I would check your Planet Organic or Trader Joe’s.

I know – it looks a little weird with the kelp noodles – which by the way are fantastic. No weird taste, extremely low calorie, a healthy dose of veggies with minerals to boot – I don’t think I’d ever look back at spaghetti. Oh and prep time? Rinse em and throw them in a bowl. Great for the raw vegan.

Of course I had to throw in a wedge of avocado. Ahhh vocado – my one true love. Don’t tell D 😉 Although sundried tomatoes are coming in at a close second. So rich and savory with just the right amount of sweet… mmm

For all you bread eaters out there – this pesto would be FANTASTIC with some crunchy bread. Or pasta… or rub it on some chicken? Mix it with some mayo and avocados for a yummy dressing? I think I might have to try that one myself.

FYI did you know basil is 33% protein? Pretty sweet for an herb!

A note about the ingredients… it gets a little dicey here because first of all, a cup of leaves is very hard to measure precisely. I got some packages of basil at my grocery store and used two… I would say that if you crammed all of the leaves into a measuring cup it’d be about half a cup. Really if you just taste test your pesto as you add in the ingredients you should be fine. Go by what you like, not by what my recipe says. Same with the tomatoes… I bought them in flattened slices so telling you to add 10 slices isn’t much help… It’s more of a guide this time 🙂

Ingredients:

“1/2 cup” fresh basil leaves

10 dried slices sundried tomatoes (remember to go by your tastes! Always start with less)

1-3 cloves garlic

1/4 cup olive oil (start with less and work your way up!)

1/4 cup macadamia nuts

1 T balsamic vinegar

Blend the leaves and oil in a food processor. Add garlic, vinegar and nuts and blend some more. Slowly add the sundried tomatoes stopping to sample your pesto to make sure it tastes good to you. You can always add more of any ingredient as I’ve kept the approximations conservative here.

For my pasta creation I literally just spooned some pesto into a bowl and mixed with tuna, then laid it out on a bed of kelp noodles! Simple pimple!