Homemade Pesto Pasta
Ingredients
- 400 gSpaghetti (dry)
- 100 gBasil (fresh leaves)
- 50 gPine nut (toasted)
- 60 gParmesan cheese (finely grated)
- 40 gPecorino cheese (sheep cheese) (finely grated)
- 2 pcGarlic (degermed)
- 150 mlExtra virgin olive oil
- 1 pinchGray sea salt
Method
Pasta coated in an intense green paste, glossy with olive oil. The powerful aroma of fresh basil and aged cheese rises as soon as everything is tossed together.
- 1
Heat a dry pan. Toss in the pine nuts. Stir constantly until they turn golden and smell nutty. Remove immediately to stop the cooking process.
- 2
Crush or blend the garlic with the cooled pine nuts and a pinch of grey sea salt. Add the basil leaves. Pulse to get a grainy paste without heating the herbs, which would turn them black.
- 3
Stir in the grated parmesan and pecorino. Drizzle in the olive oil while mixing. The sauce should become creamy, almost like a thick ointment.
- 4
Plunge the spaghetti into a large pot of boiling salted water. Cook until al dente: the pasta should offer a slight resistance when bitten. Keep some cooking water before draining.
- 5
Mix the hot pasta with the pesto off the heat. Add a tablespoon of cooking water to loosen the sauce. The pesto should coat every spaghetti without clumping.
Frequently asked questions
How do you get this dish right?
- Never heat the pesto: cooked basil loses its fragrance and turns bitter.
- The pasta cooking water is the secret to a sauce that coats perfectly without being greasy.
How long does this dish keep?
Pesto keeps for 3 days in the fridge in a jar, covered with a thin layer of olive oil to prevent oxidation.
