Pistachio Pesto
Pesto means “paste” and can be made of nearly anything, but I love nut based pestos. For this one the star isn’t a soft herb, like basil or parsley. Instead it’s pure pistachio nuts with a few garlic cloves, some salt and parmesan and enough olive oil to give me the texture I want. Nut pestos can be assertive and the texture quite thick, so it’s important to “lighten” them before tossing with pasta with just a bit of the pasta cooking water. I wait until the pasta is boiling and has given the water the gift of a bit of starch. Then I start adding the cooking water one tablespoon at a time to the pesto until I reach a texture that will just nap the pasta without overwhelming it or any additional ingredients I’m adding.
I was inspired to make this pesto by a bag of the very rare Sicilian Bronte pistachios I bought from Brett Ottolenghi’s Artisanal Foods in Las Vegas.
Don’t skimp on the quality of oil you use. I had a bottle of Cappezzana Oil from the famed Tuscan estate and put it to good use. This is exactly what these high end oils are good for.
| Servings |
- 1 1/2 cups raw pistachio nuts
- 1 1/2 cups extra virgin olive oil of exceptional quality
- Salt to taste
- 1 cup grated parmigiano reggiano
- 5 cloves peeled garlic
- 10 small basil leaves fresh, optional
- 1/4 cup Italian parsley sprigs whole, optional
Ingredients
| |
- Put nuts, garlic and salt in blender or food processor bowl with 1/2 cup of the olive oil.
- Blend or process until nuts break down and begin to form a puree. With the motor running slowly add half the remaining oil.
- If you are using the basil/and or parsley add it now and process until it combines with the puree.
- Add the parmigiano and process until it is amalgamated into the puree
- Continue pureeing the mixture while adding the remaining oil.