Spaghetti With Pesto Trapanese Recipes

Steps:

• Sauté the almonds in a little olive oil until tan.
• Put basil, garlic, and salt in food processor and chop. Put aside.
• Put in almonds and pulse until size of orzo.
• Put tomatoes, almonds, basil garlic, cheese, and olive oil back in food processor and whir briefly. Add some fresh-ground coarse pepper.
• Boil linguine. If you are Sicilian, become hysterical at the prospect of overcooked pasta. Break open a strand every 60 seconds, and when there is one tiny white speck at the center, drain instantly. Save a cupful of pasta water.
• Put pasta in with pesto and mix quickly. Add a little pasta water if necessary. Serve lukewarm or at room temperature.

Steps:

• Cover the almonds with boiling water for a few minutes to loosen their skins, then slip them off with your fingers when they are cool enough to handle. Try not to cut corners and use ready blanched almonds, as nuts quickly lose their flavour without their protective skins. Toast the almonds in a non-stick frying pan, stirring frequently for a few minutes until they are pale gold.
• Whizz the basil, garlic and a little coarse sea salt in a food processor and tip into a large bowl. Process the almonds, again with a little salt, using the pulse button, until they're the size of small grains of rice.
• Peel the tomatoes, de-seed by halving and squeezing over the sink, then chop into medium dice. Mix the tomatoes and the almonds into the basil and garlic, add the grated cheese and olive oil and mix well. Taste and season with pepper and - only if needed - a little salt.
• Boil the pasta in the usual way, taking care to keep it very al dente, especially if you are planning to serve it cold. The Sicilians are probably the most fussy of all Italians about pasta, and they are very quick to declare it scotta, which means overcooked. To judge when to drain the pasta, cut a piece of pasta open: when it has a tiny uncooked white speck at the centre, drain it. It will be perfectly cooked all the way through by the time you serve it.
• Drain the pasta but reserve a couple of ladles of the pasta water. Tip the pasta into the bowl with the pesto and mix it gently but quickly, so that the melting cheese is well distributed. Add a little pasta water if necessary so the sauce lightly coats each pasta corkscrew. The pasta can be served now, lukewarm, or at room temperature, but don't chill, as this dulls the heady aromas which are the joy of this dish.

Steps:

• Rinse the cherry tomatoes and basil leaves and pat them dry.
• Drop the tomatoes into the blender jar or food processor bowl followed by the garlic clove, the almonds, basil leaves, peperoncino and 1/2 tsp salt. Blend for a minute or more to a fine puree; scrape down the bowl and blend again if any large bits or pieces have survived.
• With the machine still running, pour in the olive oil in a steady stream, emulsifying the puree into a thick pesto. Taste and adjust seasoning. (If you're going dress the pasta within a couple of hours, leave the pesto at room temperature. Refrigerate if you'll use it longer storage, up to 2 days, but let it return to room temperature before cooking the pasta.)
• To cook the spaghetti, heat 6 quarts of water with 1 tablespoon salt, to the boil in the large pot. Scrape all the pesto into a big warm bowl.
• Cook the spaghetti al dente, lift it from the cooking pot, drain briefly, and drop onto the pesto. Toss quickly to coat the spaghetti, sprinkle the cheese all over, and toss again. Serve immediately in warm bowls.

Steps:

• Grind almonds and garlic in processor. Add 1 cup basil and chop finely. Add 6 peeled tomatoes and chop finely. Add oil and puree until almost smooth. Season with salt and pepper. (Can be prepared 6 hours ahead. Cover and chill.)
• Cook spaghetti in large pot of boiling salted water until tender but still firm to bite. Drain. Return to pot. Add sauce and toss to coat. Transfer to large bowl. Top with slivered basil and tomatoes. Serve, passing cheese separately.