pasta with pesto and spinach

I don't know what's been going on lately, but things have been nuts with both of our jobs! We have both been insanely busy. I guess that's a good thing, considering the economy, and we are both SO glad to be working! But the stress and crazy schedule is starting to catch up with us...

Tonight we got home around 7pm, and after we fed the dogs, got changed, and started to chill, it was 8pm. We didn't eat until 8:30p. And we were starved!
This recipe is great for a quick meal. I usually make a big batch of pesto and freeze it, so in instances like this, instead of making pesto I just open up the freezer and I'm ready to go! This meal came together in about 15 minutes, and was tasty and satisfying...just what we needed, considering the day we had.

umm, for tomorrow, I really mean this when I say- TGIF!!

Fettuccine with Parsley Pesto and Walnuts
Everyday Food Magazine

Ingredients

• Coarse salt and ground pepper
• 3/4 pound fettuccine (we used some cute ring shaped pasta we had instead)
  
• 2 cups packed fresh parsley
• 1/4 cup walnuts, plus more chopped for serving
• 1/4 cup grated Parmesan, plus more for serving
• 1 garlic clove
• 1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
• 1/4 cup olive oil
• 5 ounces baby spinach

Directions

1. In a large pot of boiling salted water, cook pasta until al dente. Reserve 1/2 cup pasta water; drain pasta, and return to pot.
2. In a food processor, puree parsley, walnuts, Parmesan, garlic, lemon juice, and 2 tablespoons water until a paste forms. With machine running, add oil in a thin stream; process until very smooth, about 1 minute. Season pesto with salt and pepper.
3. To pasta in pot, add pesto, 1/4 cup pasta water, and spinach; toss to combine. Thin with pasta water as needed. Serve sprinkled with walnuts and Parmesan. **
   

** we topped with toasted pine nuts. yum!