2 servings
- 200 gr (8 oz) spaghetti
- 25 leaves of fresh basil
- 1 tablespoon pine nuts
- ½ garlic clove
- rock salt
- olive oil
- 5 cherry tomatoes (optional)
Wash the basil in fresh water, in a bowl. For some reasons I haven’t fully understood myself, it looks like it’s better if you don’t wash it under running water. Leave it to dry for a few minutes on a clean cloth. Put the basil, rock salt, pine nuts and garlic inside a mortar and get yourself busy with the pestle for about 10 minutes until the ingredients are reduced to a light green pulp. Then add the olive oil and mix thoroughly. If you haven’t got a mortar you can use a food processor , although by hand the taste is more delicate. Meanwhile cook the pasta in fiercely boiling salted water, taking care of keeping aside a couple of spoons of the cooking water before draining it. Add the water to the sauce and stir well. Mix pasta and sauce together well. As an option try adding a few cherry tomatoes cut in quarters , removing first the seeds and the pulp, too watery for this recipe. It’s obvious that the sweat involved in a hand made pesto will do better for real!
