Trofie with Pesto | Kitchen on the Cliff with Giovanna Bellia LaMarca

pine nuts

🥗Healthier: walnuts

💰Cheaper: sunflower seeds

Walnuts provide a similar texture and flavor at a lower cost.

parmesan cheese

🥗Healthier: nutritional yeast

💰Cheaper: grana padano

Grana padano offers a similar taste for less.

Remove the leaves from the stalks of the basil and rinse them.

Place the basil leaves in a food processor.

Crush 2 cloves of garlic slightly, remove the stem, and add to the food processor.

Add some salt to the food processor and start it up.

While the processor is running, drizzle in 1/2 cup of extra virgin olive oil.

Grate 1/2 cup of parmigiano-reggiano cheese and add it to the food processor.

Add a little more than half of 1/2 cup of pine nuts to the processor and blend again.

Scrape the sides of the processor and finish blending the pesto until smooth.

Boil water in a large pot and add salt.

Cut 1 large potato into uneven slices and add it to the boiling water.

Cook the potato for 10 minutes or until fork tender.

After 10 minutes, add string beans to the boiling water and cook for 2 minutes.

Add the trofie pasta to the pot and cook for 8 minutes.

Strain the pasta using a Chinese strainer to preserve the pasta water.

Add a little of the reserved pasta cooking water to the pesto to loosen it.

Toss the trofie with the pesto until well coated.

Drizzle a little olive oil over the pasta after mixing.

Transfer the pasta to a serving platter without mixing anything in the platter.

Top the dish with the remaining pine nuts.

Cooking Techniques

Equipment Needed

Spice Level:

Allergens