Manchego Pesto Spaghetti with Asparagus

I was watching the new TV show "The Chew" today and was inspired by Mario Batali's recipe - but I did what I do, and altered it just a bit. First of all I do not like romano cheese, and I am a bit of a lactard - so I used Manchego (sheep cheese). I used asparagus, and he used green beans and potatoes. So here goes.

— 2 cups basil leaves
— 3 tablespoons minced walnuts
— 1 clove garlic
— 1 pinch sea salt
— 4 ounces EVOO
— 1/4 cup shredded manchego cheese
— 1 bunch asparagus
— 1 box whole wheat spaghetti

Put water up to boil for the pasta.
While you are (not) watching the pot, mix basil leaves, walnuts, salt, and garlic in a food processor (I use a mini-chop).
Put pasta in to boil - and set timer for 3 minutes.
Add to dry basil mixture olive oil and cheese, pulse.
Chop the asparagus and put in the pot with the boiling water for the next 3 minutes.
While this is cooking put the pesto into a cold saucepan and turn the heat on medium.
Drain the pasta and asparagus, and add to the pesto pan.
Mix, cook for a little bit, and serve.

gnocchi with mushrooms and basil

1 package of gnocchi - i used Delverde 1.1lb package
1 package white button mushrooms, chopped roughly but not small
10 basil leaves - rolled and chopped
5 cloves garlic
1 teaspoon oregano
3-4 scallions chopped
olive oil

boil water for your gnocchi
prepare all vegetables by chopping
add olive oil to pan as well as garlic
once garlic starts to cook, add chopped scallions

once the water is boiled add the gnocchi (takes about 2-3 minutes to cook)

then add mushrooms to the mixture, and cook for 2-3 minutes stirring often

drain gnocchi and add to mushroom mixture, mix
add basil, stir and cook another minute
serve