Pistacchio pesto pasta

We all know the most classical pesto, the ‘pesto alla Genovese’ that counts basil as a main ingredient, that inspired many creative variants such as this pistachio pesto, where the pine nuts of the original recipe are swapped with pistachios.

The first time I had this pasta was on the island of Panarea, Sicily. It was called ‘Spaghetti alla frescaiola’, and it had a sauce of fresh cherry tomatoes, pistachios and zucchini. Needless to say it blew my mind, and I looked up pasta recipes with pistachios.

As soon as I came back from my holiday I had to try and cook it myself, and it quickly became one of my favorite dishes. It comes together rather quickly but still feels very decadent.

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Ingredients

Serves: 2 portions

Prepping time: 30 min

Cooking time: 15 min

For the pasta:

• 200g pasta

• 1 zucchini (the smaller the tastier)

• 100g cherry tomatoes

• Burrata (not mandatory)

For the pistachio pesto:

• 100g unsalted shelled pistachios

• 50g olive oil

• 10 basil leaves

• 20g parmesan

• 1/2 a lemon zest

• 50g water (better if pasta cooking water)

Preparation

• Bring a pot of water to boil. While you wait, dice your zucchini and slice the tomatoes in half and set them aside.

• Sautée the zucchini in a pan with a clove of garlic that you’ll remove once they’re done.

• Start preparing the pesto: place the pistachios, parmesan, basil and olive oil in a blender, adjust with salt and pepper to taste. If it’s too dense, you can add some pasta cooking water.

• When the water is boiling, salt it and throw the pasta in. Cook until very al dente, and add it to the pan with the zucchini: at this point, you’ll add the pistachio pesto, the cherry tomatoes and a large spoon of cooking water. Simmer until the pasta is al dente, add more pasta water if it becomes too dry.

• Serve piping hot and top it with basil, tomatoes, pistachios and if you like it, a small burrata!