Pesto Pasta
Updated March 2, 2025
Christopher Testani for The New York Times. Food Stylist: Simon Andrews.
- Total Time
- 30 minutes
- Rating
- Comments
- Read comments
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Ingredients
½ cup walnuts or pine nuts
Big bunch basil, about 10 stems
2 cloves garlic, peeled, or to taste
Olive oil as needed
Salt and pepper
Grated Parmesan to taste
1 pound pasta, any shape
Preparation
- Step 1
Toast nuts in a dry skillet over medium heat, shaking frequently, until fragrant, browned and not burned. Pulse them in a food processor until chopped but not at all powdery.
- Step 2
Wash the basil; dry it in a salad spinner. Put it in the food processor with the garlic and as much oil as you need to allow the machine to do its work. Process, adding salt, pepper and oil as needed. When the pesto is smooth and delicious, stir in or pulse in the cheese.
- Step 3
Cook the pasta in boiling salted water until it's tender but not mushy. Dress with the pesto, thinning with a little of the cooking water if necessary. Serve immediately.
Private Notes
Comments
Kudos, Mark for toasting the pine nuts. Not every recipe says to do it, but IMO, it's adds a world of flavor. Walnuts? Too emphatic a taste for me. I also think bow-ties or rotelle are the best because they hold the pesto better than long spaghetti. By the way, I add chicken breast to it - sometimes; however, a simple pesto dish is one of the great pleasures of life. Whoever combined basil, (toasted!) pine nuts, garlic, olive oil and Parmesan is a culinary saint.
Pesto is from the Italian verb pestare (to pound or crush) pesto can be made from almost any vegetable, this recipe is pesto alla genovese because it has basil another favorite of mine is pesto alla rucola, rucola(arugula) is substituted for basil. to a purist pesto should be pounded with a wood pestle and marble mortar and the nuts pinoli a classic version of pesto alla genovese is Mr Bittman's with the addition of small steamed green beans and boiled potatoes and the pasta is trenette.
I don't dry my basil, I think the little bit of water helps keep the mix loose. And I don't use the pasta water; it's too hot and makes the basil drab colored.
That’s all you need for a sublime dish! Sometimes I use toasted unsalted cashews instead of pine nuts. I think the taste is quite good.
Has anyone tried salted/roasted pistachios instead of pine nuts??
Instead of pine nuts, I use a small can of sliced black olives. They give the pesto a nice deep sort of meaty flavor. Pine nuts are pricey; I wouldn't use them for anything except pesto so they go bad in my pantry. I sometimes add feta cheese instead of Parmesan or Romano, making the pesto more Greek than Genovese.