Fresh basil pesto: how to make it and serve it with pasta
Fresh basil pesto
In summer, nothing beats the pungent, aromatic flavor and texture of homemade pesto. For an easy picnic dish, toss it with pasta, small pieces of good mozzarella and cherry tomatoes.
- Prep Time: 10 minutes
- Cook Time: 10 minutes
- Total Time: 20 minutes
- Yield: 10 servings
- Cuisine: Italian
- Diet: Gluten-Free, Vegetarian
Ingredients
- 2 big bunches of fresh basil
- 100 g (⅔ cup) pine nuts (or walnuts or almonds if you can’t get pine nuts)
- 1 garlic clove, chopped
- 250 ml (1 cup) good olive oil
- 100 g (1 cup) grated Parmesan
- Salt and pepper, to taste (remember the Parmesan and the pasta water are salty)
- Pasta (see notes for quantities)
- Potatoes and green beans (optional, see notes)
Instructions
- Make the pesto. With a mortar and pestle: pound the basil, pine nuts, garlic and a pinch of salt to a paste, then work in the cheese and oil. With a mezzaluna or food processor: chop the basil, pine nuts and garlic, then stir in the cheese and oil.
- Put the pesto in a small bowl and cover the surface with a little oil straight away, so the basil doesn’t oxidize and turn black.
- Cook the pasta in plenty of boiling water, salted just before you add the pasta. Cook it al dente, a good minute or two less than the package says, so it’s cooked but still firm to the bite. Reserve some of the cooking water when you drain it.
- In a warmed bowl (you can warm it with the pasta water), toss the pasta with the pesto, adding a little pasta water if it seems dry. Add more cheese at the table or in the sauce, as you prefer.
Notes
Pasta quantities
These are very personal, but for a light sauce like this one, allow 80–100 g (3–3½ oz) per person as a first course, or 160–180 g (6 oz) as a main course.
Green beans and potatoes
In Liguria, pesto is often served with green beans and potatoes cooked in the pasta water. Allow 1 small potato and a handful of beans per person, and a little less pasta. Both need about 10–12 minutes in boiling water. If you salt the water with only the potatoes in it, they will be too salty and the pasta too bland. For soft, comforting potatoes and beans that aren’t overcooked, with a pasta shape that cooks in 10 minutes:
1) Minute 0: add the potatoes, in small cubes, to the unsalted boiling water.
2) Minute 2: add the beans and the pasta, and salt the water.
3) Minute 12: drain and dress.
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