Wednesday, August 13, 2008

Nigella’s unpestoed pesto

Nigella’s unpestoed pesto

Part 2 - that is not something I like seeing on the title of a movie. Some do make me curious, I’ll admit it, while others... Can even become a dark spot on someone’s career - I bet that the Oscar nominee Amy Adams would agree with me here. :)

You’ll think: “she’s already posted pasta al pesto”. And you are right. Since sequels can be masterpieces, too, I present you my pesto part 2.

I saw Nigella cooking this dish on TV but couldn’t write down the recipe - I eyeballed all the ingredients. As I ended up finding it online, I’ll post it here for you.

Even though this pasta recipe is insanely simple, I’ll be honest: I prefer the original pesto sauce. But that doesn’t mean you can’t give the part 2 a try.

Nigella’s unpestoed pesto

Nigella’s unpestoed pesto

1 pound (450g) spaghetti
1 cup (240ml) olive oil – I used less
5 garlic cloves, peeled
1 bunch fresh basil leaves
½ cup pine nuts
8 ounces (224g) whole Parmesan
sea salt and freshly ground black pepper

Bring a large pot of salted water to the boil and then add the spaghetti. While the pasta is cooking, pour the olive oil into a large frying pan and throw in some peeled cloves of garlic. Cook over gentle heat until the garlic starts to turn light brown and its scent wafts upward. Remove the cloves from the pan and take the pan off the heat.
Roughly chop or shred a mound of basil leaves, set aside. In a second dry frying pan, toast a handful or so of pine nuts. When the pasta is ready, drain it, toss it in the garlic-infused olive oil, and then transfer to a warm bowl.
Using a vegetable peeler, shave in the parmesan and sprinkle with the toasted pine nuts. Toss well, throw over all but a small handful of the basil leaves, and turn again.
Sprinkle with sea salt, black pepper and the remaining shredded basil leaves and serve at once.

Serves 4

28 comments:

Anonymous said...

Well... it still looks pretty wonderful! :)

Anonymous said...

I love the way the shavings of parm are placed on the plate! Yummy!

Deborah said...

What an interesting recipe! And I'll take a part 2 any day if it is involving food!

Anonymous said...

Mmmm. very pretty and so perfect for the heat!

eatingclubvancouver_js said...

Have to say that pesto #2 looks just a touch more "elegant" than the pestoed one. Too bad it wasn't as flavourful as the first.

Anonymous said...

I saw you reference to the Zuger Kirchetorte you made in June - and my heart leaped!
I live in Zug, Switzerland, and these little cakes are everywhere. I've had a few, living here, and from many different places. I've yet to find one that isn't spectacular.

Anyway, I'm impressed you made it. I hope you loved it, because I sure do.

-Ansley

pam said...

Patricia, I hink I tried something like this too. It was called a deconstructed pesto. I also liked the regular pesto with the pasta better.

Joe Horn said...

Simple is such the way to go. I love it and the photos! This is the second time I've been to the blog, keep up the great work. Your pictures are an inspiration.

Joe @ mycookingquest

Nora B. said...

I like the title for this recipe. Maybe this doesn't taste as good as the original because the flavours don't get to mingle very much? But still it does look like an simple yet elegant dish. Thanks for sharing the sequel with us!!

Lydia (The Perfect Pantry) said...

Nice way to use the small basil leaves on my garden plants -- but I think I'll stick with traditional pesto, which brings all the flavors together so nicely.

Peabody said...

Too bad I have used all my basil this Summer, this looks good.

KJ said...

This dish looks lovely and fresh. I can't help thinking deconstructed pesto is kind of funny. What will Nigella think of next?

Debbie said...

The pasta looks delicious...nice summer recipe...

LyB said...

Ah, Nigella and her oh, so simple dishes! It looks very beautiful, and delicious. I love plain pasta with just a little butter and salt (my mom would make it for me when I was a kid) so this is a step up from that! :)

Anonymous said...

That looks as pretty as a picture! Absolutely lovely and simple and would be great for guests (for its beauty) or a weekday dinner (for its simplicity)

Lisa said...

Regular pesto is definitely great, maybe my favorite food, but this looks so pretty and light. Incredibly appealing on a summer's evening!

Anonymous said...

Well Patricia, this looks too good and simple to pass up.
I have sweet basil and lemon basil happily thriving in my garden, so Unpestoed Pesto is what's for dinner.

Dragon said...

Clever girl, that Nigella. :D Yours looks great!

Elle said...

Sort of a deconstructed pasta pesto dish. Looks great!

Alexa said...

It is visually so appealing and I bet it taste great. It is the simplest dish often that make a great meal.

Helene said...

It looks fantastic though...and simple, light and refreshing!

Helene said...

It looks fantastic though...and simple, light and refreshing!

lubnakarim06 said...

Yummy recipe. Awesome click of photo.

Patricia Scarpin said...

Michelle, thank you, sweetie!

Cathy, I'm a sucker for cheese. :)

Deb, I think you are right!

Dayna, very fresh!

Eating Club..., I think you've said it all. :)

Ansley, you are so kind, thank you for your comment! I'm so glad to hear you like the torte and I did love it. It was all worth it!

Pam, I'm glad to know I'm in such great company, my friend. :)

Joe, thank you for your kind words!

Nora, you are right - that is the problem here. Not time for the basil and nuts to soak up in the oil. You've nailed it, sweetie!
xx

Lydia, I agree.

Pea, my basil is still going, not so strong, though, maybe because the winter is not so cold here.

KJ, she's kind of crazy, isn't she? :)

Debbie, thank you!

LyB, my goodness, I love that too - butter, salt and a dash of black pepper. I can eat that for days! :)

Lorraine, I agree with you, darling!

Lisa, I love pesto, too. Love it!

Marysol, I have never tried lemon basil, I'm interested!

Dragon, she is! :)

Elle, thank you!

Alexa, I think you've said it all.

Helen, very simple!

Jeanne said...

Interesting idea - I think I'm with you in preferring the original pesto, but this does look really beautiful...

Manggy said...

Hey, unpestoed pesto has its place in our hearts... When we really, really don't want to fuss with any machinery/ cleaning! :P It does look very light and refreshing!

Anonymous said...

I like the deconstructed idea - this way you get all of the crunch from the pine nuts!

I have the book and have thought about trying this one, but then I always get put off by the lack of vegetable in there. Maybe some sliced baby spinach stirred through at the last minute would work well.

Sarah said...

I had no idea that Amy Adams was in that movie!! How funny.

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