Welcome to the Footcare Clinic’s Cooking and Eating blog.
Of course, our diverse community offers many delicious cuisines and cooking-styles. One of the things we like to do with clients when they come to us at the Footcare Clinic, is ask them about their favourite foods, what restaurants they go to, what recipes from grandma do they know? It is truly marvellous that we can share our culture, our heritage and our history with one another through what we cook and eat.
Pesto Pasta Recipe
Homemade pesto:
1 1/2 cup fresh basil leaves (can also try other leafy greens such as rocket, baby spinach) 
2 garlic cloves peeled, crushed
3 tbsp pine nuts (or macadamia)- lightly toasted if preferred
4 tbsp grated Parmesan
4 tbsp good quality, extra virgin olive oil
Salt and pepper (1/2tsp each)
Ingredients for pasta:
1 serve (as above) of homemade pesto
~300g Penne pasta (choose whole-wheat for a healthier option)
1 bunch baby tomatoes, halved
1 bunch fresh basil leaves
Parmesan (or low fat feta cheese)
1 cup reserved pasta water
Salt and pepper to taste
Optional: Add small chicken cubes or cooked, shredded chicken.
Method:
Crush all ingredients for homemade pesto in a blender (adding more liquid such as a splash of oil or water if too dry), until you are happy with the consistency. 
Bring a large pot of water to a boil and add a pinch of salt to it. Once boiling, add the penne.
Once the pasta is cooked and water is ready to be drained, reserve 1 cup of the pasta water and drain the rest.
Transfer the pasta to a pan on low heat, and immediately add the homemade pesto and 1 cup reserved water to coat.
Once fully coated, remove from heat, top with fresh baby tomatoes, basil leaves, Parmesan or a healthier cheese option such as low fat feta and salt & pepper to taste.
Enjoy!
Have you got a favourite recipe that you would like to share with us? We’d love to be able to add that to our future Stepping Into The Kitchen blogs. You can email your recipes directly to us or share it with us when you next visit The Footcare Clinic.
