From Sicily with Love ...

Tagliatelle with Pistachio Pesto

One of the most prized recipes I took away from the three week vacation/honeymoon that John and I had this summer was a Sicilian Pesto recipe - Pistachio Pesto. There is an area near Mt. Etna (the largest volcano in Europe) called Bronte that is renowned for pistachios and they use them in EVERYTHING. Delicious.

Craving the pesto we had on our trip, John and I decided to make up a batch yesterday. What we made turned out to be a pint's worth of pesto - plenty to keep stored away. We used a few tablespoons on some tagliatelle last night, topped with fresh mint (as the Sicilians do) and had a tomato mozzarella salad on the side. It was fantastic.

Fresh Pistachio Pesto
(enough for one pint)

Ingredients:

10 oz. of pistachios (shelled)
1 bunch of fresh basil
1 handful of fresh mint
2-3 tablespoons of olive oil (and some extra for storing)
juice from 1/2 lemon
salt and pepper to taste
2 tablespoons of fresh grated parmesan or pecorino cheese

1. In a food processor (or blender), chop the pistachios until finely ground.
2. Add the fresh basil and mint - pulse a few times.
3. Add lemon juice and olive oil. Pulse until ingredients form a thick paste.
4. Add salt and pepper to taste.
5. Reserve 3-4 tablespoons to serve with pasta (if using that day). Mix grated cheese into reserved pesto.

To serve with Pasta:
1. Cook 1 lb. of pasta.
2. Reserve 1/2 cup of pasta water before draining pasta.
3. In large pan, heat 1-2 tablespoons of olive oil over medium heat. Add 3-4 tablespoons of pesto and 1 clove fresh garlic (minced). Heat for 2 minutes.
4. Add 1/2 cup of reserved pasta water. Mix water and pesto together well.
5. Add pasta and toss until well combined with pesto.
6. Top with fresh mint and serve.

Storing Pesto:

If you plan to store the pesto by freezing, you do not want to have any cheese in the mixture as cheese does not freeze well. You can freeze the pesto in two ways:
1. Use an ice tray. Line the tray with plastic wrap and place pesto in each pocket. Freeze and then store in a freezer bag.
2. Use a canning jar. Place in jar and top off jar with a thin layer of olive oil. This will seal the pesto. Keep jar in freezer.
Frozen pesto will last 3-6 months.

You can also store pesto in the refrigerator of a couple weeks.
1. Keep pesto in a canning jar. Top off with a thin layer of olive oil (this will keep the basil and mint from turning brown). Keep in the refrigerator.

Each time you use the pesto, mix in a bit of grated cheese.

This also excellent to serve as a spread on ciabatta or a baguette, on pizza, on baked potatoes and several other things. Just use your imagination.