Pesto Spaghetti with Seared Tuna

I am a lover of food as anyone who visits here regularly can attest. But I know that there are some of my recipes that are difficult for some of my readers to do. Since May is Celiac Awareness Month I wanted to share some information for all your pasta lovers who can’t indulge. There is a new brand of gluten free pasta alternative out there that will let your indulge without guilt! There is pasta from Explore Cuisine made from edamame, black beans, soybeans, chickpeas and more. You can find out more about the pasta choices at Explore Cuisine’s website. I am featuring a recipe today using edamame spaghetti that is coated in pesto and topped with seared tuna!  You can get your own box of Edamame Spaghetti here. 

Ingredients: 

8 oz Edamame Spaghetti

Tuna

1 lb center cut ahi tuna

1 teaspoon ground coriander

1 teaspoon spicy red pepper

Dash of vegetable oil

Salt

Kale-Walnut Pesto

2 cups baby kale

1/2 cup basil

1/4 cup walnuts

1 garlic clove, minced

1 lemon, juiced

1/2 cup olive oil

Pinch of spicy red pepper (Aleppo or Maresh)

Salt

Garnish

1/2 large carrot, peeled

1/2 hot red pepper, thinly sliced

1/2 teaspoon lemon zest

10 tiny basil leaves

Sea salt

Spicy red pepper (Aleppo or Marash)

Olive oil

Instructions: 

1) Make pesto: Place kale, basil, nuts and garlic into food processor. Sprinkle with salt and pepper liberally. Pour 1/4 cup of the olive oil over the greens. Blend by pouring the rest of the olive oil in a slow stream, until pesto is nice and chunky. Squeeze lemon on top, taste and adjust the seasoning if needed.

2) Sear tuna: Pat tuna dry with paper towels. Season tuna with salt, red pepper and coriander. Drizzle with olive oil on top and rub spices with oil into its flesh. Heat a medium size stainless steel saute pan until very hot. Pout just a dash of oil and place tuna in the pan. Cook on all sides for about 30 seconds to 1 minute, until it releases easy and all sides have a crust. Slice tuna against the grain into 1/4 inch slices with a sharp knife.

3) Slice carrots into ribbons with peeler and then slice into long, thin strips. Cut red pepper into thin slices.

4) Cook Edamame Spaghetti to package instructions, transfer to large bowl. Add carrot, red pepper and 5-6 tablespoons of pesto to the pasta and toss to combine. Drizzle more olive oil if pasta looks too dry.

5) To plate, divide pasta between bowls by twisting it with a folk. Drizzle lightly with good quality olive oil, sprinkle with salt and red pepper. Top with 3-4 tuna slices, sprinkle with salt and red pepper again. Scatter some lemon zest and tiny basil leaves over each bowl. Serve at room temperature.

 

Recipe courtesy of Art de Fete