CLASSIC

SPAGHETTI WITH PESTO SAUCE

EASY | 30 minutes

The protagonist of this recipe: Pecorino Romano PDO

Presentation

This pasta speaks Genoese, but it has very distant origins and its simple goodness and completeness has made it an international success. Basil, ocimum basilicum, literally royal herb, of Middle Eastern origin is the basis of the original pesto, which had much more garlic and little cheese. This for two reasons: the Arab-Persian influence in the Genoese world for long centuries, but also the use of garlic by sailors, for its antiseptic and anti-inflammatory properties, useful in those periods, on board ships. Today pesto is a creamy sauce, balanced between various ingredients and it prefers a raw cheese with an intense flavour that enhances its flavour. Pesto is a cold, soft and creamy sauce, it is not to be cooked, it is always ready, the pasta cooking time is enough and we are all at the table.

Ingredients

4 people

Spaghetti 280 g
Basil 70 g of leaves
Garlic clove 1
Pine nuts 30 g
Pecorino Romano 50 g
Fiore Sardo PDO 80 g
Coarse salt 10 g
Extra virgin olive oil 80 ml

Method

While making the sauce for the spaghetti with pesto, put a pot with plenty of salted water on the stove.

Put the peeled garlic clove, basil, grated Fiore Sardo pecorino cheese and pine nuts in a mortar. (If you are wondering what to use instead of pine nuts in the pesto, we suggest you try it with walnuts).

Mix all the ingredients well in the mortar and pound them until you get a fine paste, then add the oil slowly and combine it into the mixture until you reach the desired creamy consistency.

Cook the pasta and drain it softly, if you like the idea of a coloured dish you can opt for spaghetti with pesto and small tomatoes.

Plate up and combine with delicious croutons.

The pesto sauce is also excellent for dressing simple baked vegetables.

How to make Genovese pesto?

To prepare the pesto you will need a few ingredients and a good marble mortar. The main ingredients are basil leaves and pine nuts. The original recipe calls for this to be done with a mortar, but alternatively to speed up the times it can also be made with a mixer.

How do you keep pesto from blackening?

To prevent the pesto from blackening, try dipping the basil leaves in extra virgin olive oil.

Perché il pesto viene amaro?

The bitter taste of pesto may depend on some enzymes contained in the basil leaves which, in contact with the air and with sudden changes in temperature, tend to darken the final result.

How to store Genoese pesto?

To best preserve the Genoese pesto when it is ready, it is very important to remember to cover it with a thin layer of oil, which in addition to counteracting blackening, allows for longer-lasting preservation.

How to defrost pesto?

Defrosting pesto is really very simple: if you have time to wait, you can transfer it from the freezer to the fridge. If, however, you are in a hurry, you can put it in a bowl and add a few spoonfuls of pasta cooking water: it will be ready to use in an instant.

Why is it called “Pesto”?

The name of this sauce, for which Liguria is famous throughout the world, derives from the original preparation method: the crushing of the leaves and other ingredients in the traditional marble murta' (mortar).

What can be used instead of pine nuts in pesto?

Instead of pine nuts, the traditional Genoese pesto recipe can also be replaced with hazelnuts, walnuts, almonds or pistachios, depending on the degree of sweetness or flavor you prefer. But the real recipe for Genoese pesto is exclusively with pinolils.