Pesto alla Trapanese (Sicilian Almond Pesto)
Bring some zing to your routine with this bright and zesty Pesto alla Trapanese. With garlic, basil, almonds, and cherry tomatoes, and—in my slightly rogue version—mint and arugula, takes minutes to prepare and makes a great vegetarian main for a weeknight dinner.
Servings: 4 to 6
Ingredients
- Kosher salt
- 10 cherry tomatoes
- 1/2 cup almonds (un-roasted/raw, skin-on or blanched)
- 1 cup fresh basil leaves
- 3/4 cup fresh mint leaves (optional), or substitute with more basil
- 1 handful arugula, coarsely chopped (optional)
- 1 medium garlic clove, coarsely chopped
- Freshly ground black pepper
- 1/3 to 1/2 cup extra-virgin olive oil
- 1/2 cup freshly Pecorino Romano or Pecorino Sardo cheese
For Serving (optional, or serve with crostini or raw veggies)
- 1 pound spiral-shaped pasta (like cavatelli, fusilli, or busiate)
Instructions
- Preheat the oven and put the pasta water on to boil. Turn the oven to 375°F. Fill a large pot with water and set it over high heat. Bring to a boil, then salt generously.
- Blanch and peel the tomatoes and almonds. Bring a separate small pot of water to a boil. Use a small knife to cut a shallow X on the end of each tomato just through the skin. Plunge them into the boiling water for about 1 minute, just enough to loosen their skins. Use a skimmer or slotted spoon to transfer them to a bowl to cool slightly. If your almonds are unblanched (still have the darker brown skin) add them to the same pot of boiling water and blanch for 2 to 3 minutes, just until their skins loosen. Drain and put them in a bowl to cool slightly.
- Peel. Peel the skins off the tomatoes by pulling at the corner of X cut. Slice in half and gently squeeze out any seeds over the sink to discard, and add them to a food processor. Pop the almonds out of their skins and spread them on a small baking sheet.
- Toast the almonds in the hot oven for 7 minutes. Just enough to dry them out and toast them lightly. Let cool.
- Process the pesto. In the bowl of a food processor fitted with the metal blade, add the tomatoes, almonds, basil, mint, arugula (if using), and garlic. Season with a generous pinch—1/2 to 1 teaspoon—of salt and a grinding of black pepper. Pulse to break up the ingredients. With the machine running, drizzle in enough olive oil to achieve a thick, nearly (but not quite) smooth paste, 1/3 to 1/2 cup. Scrape the pesto into a bowl and stir in 1/2 cup Pecorino cheese.
- Cook the pasta. Drop in the pasta into the boiling water and cook, stirring once or twice to prevent sticking, until al dente according to the package instructions. Reserve about 1 cup of the cooking water, then drain.
- Coat the pasta in the pesto. Return the pasta to the pot and scrape in most of the pesto, reserving about 1/4 cup for garnish. Pour in a splash of pasta water and toss vigorously to combine everything well. If the sauce is thick and clumpy, add more pasta water to loosen it up so that it coats the pasta evenly.
- Serve. Transfer the pasta to individual bowls. Top each bowl with a dollop of pesto and a sprinkle of Pecorino cheese and serve.
Notes
Nutrition
Calories: 312.4kcal | Carbohydrates: 7.9g | Protein: 8.9g | Fat: 28.7g | Saturated Fat: 5.1g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 4.1g | Monounsaturated Fat: 18.5g | Trans Fat: 0.003g | Cholesterol: 13mg | Sodium: 159.5mg | Potassium: 321.8mg | Fiber: 3.4g | Sugar: 2.1g | Vitamin A: 1053.5IU | Vitamin C: 14.4mg | Calcium: 226.4mg | Iron: 1.8mg
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