Pasta with Pesto Sauce

Pasta with Pesto Sauce or, “Pasta al pesto” is a classic Italian dish from the region of Liguria and is made simply by blending fresh basil, garlic, lightly toasted pine nuts, a good, aged Pecorino cheese and your best olive oil. Fortunately, you don’t have to wait for the summer months, when basil grows in abundance in our gardens to make this luscious pasta sauce. With spring just around the corner, aromatic, fresh basil is starting to make its appearance in our local markets alongside early spring vegetables.  After a long cold winter like the one we had this year here in Virginia, everybody is eager to move on to brighter and fresher flavors.

How to make fresh Pesto Sauce

The traditional way of preparing pesto is by using a mortar and pestle, but, if you have a food processor, all you need to do is to put the ingredients in the processor and pulse it several times until you are happy with the texture and the consistency. It is best to enjoy this dish right away, as pesto will darken and brown quickly, although it will still be tasty for several days.

Bow Tie Pasta with Pesto (Farfalle al Pesto)

Pasta with Pesto Sauce

 

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Prep time

10 mins

Cook time

15 mins

Total time

25 mins

 

A delicious recipe from Northern Italy!

Author: Marilena Leavitt

Recipe type: Pasta

Cuisine: Italian

Serves: 4-6

Ingredients

• 3 cups fresh basil, firmly packed to measure
• ¼ cup pine nuts, lightly toasted
• 2 lrg. garlic cloves, peeled and smashed
• ½ cup Pecorino Romano cheese, grated (plus some shaved for garnish)
• 1 tsp. salt
• --- freshly ground pepper to taste
• --- pinch red pepper flakes
• ½ cup extra virgin olive oil
• 1 lb. bowtie-shaped pasta (farfalle)

Instructions

1. In the bowl of a food processor or blender, combine the first 3 ingredients. Process to blend and then add the cheese, salt and pepper, stopping once to scrape down the sides of the bowl. With the machine running, gradually add the olive oil in a steady stream and blend until smooth.
2. Meanwhile, bring a large pot of water, three-fourths full of water to a boil. Salt generously the water and add the bow-tie pasta. Cook stirring frequently until the pasta is “al dente.”
3. Drain the pasta, reserving about ½ cup of the cooking water. Return pasta to the pot and toss well -- while still hot -- with the pesto. Check the consistency and add some of the reserved pasta water to loosen the sauce.
4. Garnish with savings of Pecorino Romano cheese and a few toasted pine nuts and serve immediately in warm bowls.

Notes

1. If you need to store the pesto, put it in the smallest container possible and thoroughly press it down to eliminate air pockets. Pour a little olive oil over the surface, cover, and refrigerate for up to a week. For smaller quantities, you can also use silicone ice cube trays.
2. If you don't have Pecorino, you can use Parmesan cheese

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