Everybody knows italian pesto alla genovese. Pesto is a sauce originating in Genoa in the Liguria region of northern Italy, and traditionally consists of crushed garlic, basil, and pine nuts blended with olive oil, and Parmigiano Reggiano (Parmesan cheese). The name derives from the word pestare, which means to pound, to crush, in reference to the original method of preparation, with marble mortar and wooden pestle.
Because pesto is a generic term for anything that is made by pounding, there are various other pestos, some traditional, some modern. In Sicily you can taste a delicious pesto made with almonds and tomatoes, called Pesto alla Trapanese. Each Italian region has a different way to prepare pesto sauce, with some of the ingredients, which are typical of its tradition. So today we present you five alternative italian pesto sauce recipes.
Pesto alla Trapanese
Ingredients
50 g of basil leaves
1 garlic clove
50 g of sliced almonds
250 g ripe tomatoes, peeled and diced
1 spoon of grated pecorino cheese
½ cup of extra virgin olive oil
Coarse sea salt
Preparation
Mix the basil, almonds, garlic, tomatoes and salt in a food processor, adding the olive oil and process until all the ingredients are combined. Pour the pesto in a bowl, add the cheese and mix all the ingredients. This kind of pesto sauce is perfect with busiate pasta (a traditional Italian hand made long length pasta). Keep the sauce in fridge not longer than 2-3 days.
Pesto alla rucola
Ingredients
100 gr rucola
50 gr grated Parmigiano Reggiano cheese
50 gr grated Pecorino cheese
1 glass of Extra virgin olive oil
50 gr pine nuts
1 slice of garlic
Salt
Preparation
Wash the rucola, then dry it and put it in the food processor, adding the pine nuts, the grated Parmigiano Reggiano cheese, the grated pecorino cheese, the slice of garlic, the salt and a little bit of extra virgin olive oil. Mix all the ingredients in the food processor, adding in the meanwhile the rest of the Olive Oil. This kind of pesto sauce is perfect with tonnarelli pasta. Keep the sauce in fridge not longer than 2-3 days.
Pesto alla Siciliana
Ingredients
500 gr tomatoes
50 gr pine nuts
150 ml Extra virgin olive oil
1 slice of garlic
100 g of basil leaves
100 gr Parmigiano Reggiano cheese
150 gr cow ricotta
Salt, pepper
Preparation
Wash the tomatoes and cut it in 2 half, then take away the filling and squeeze them. Wash the basil and pour the tomatoes in a food processor adding the basil, the pine nuts. Add now the slice of garlic, the Parmigiano Reggiano cheese and the ricotta, adding salt and pepper. Then add the extra virgin olive oil and switch on the food processor. This kind of pesto sauce is perfect with casarecce pasta (a traditional Italian hand made short pasta rolled into a S shape). Keep the sauce in fridge not longer than 2-3 days.
Pesto di Pistachio
Ingredients
200 gr of pistachios
1 slice of garlic
30 gr of pine nuts
2 spoons of parmigiano Reggiano cheese
Salt, pepper
Extra Virgin Olive Oil
Preparation
Peel the pistachios and mince them with a knife. Then add them in a food processor adding other ingredients. This pesto sauce recipe comes from Sicily, where the best pistachios come from a little town called Bronte. This kind of pesto sauce is perfect with fusilli pasta. Keep the sauce in fridge not longer than 2-3 days.
Pesto ai pomodori secchi
Ingredients
300 gr dry tomatoes in oil
1 teaspoon of oregano
50 gr pine nuts
Chili pepper
Parsley
Basil
Extra virgin olive oil
Preparation
Put all the ingredients in the food processor and mix all, adding a little bit of olive oil. This is a traditional recipe from Puglia region in south Italy, where the dry tomatoes are typical specialities. The most famous ones are from San Marzano, a little town where they are let dry out while covered by salt for days. This kind of pesto sauce is perfect with rigatoni pasta. Keep the sauce in fridge not longer than 2-3 days.
