This Creamy Pistachio Pesto is a true gem. Originally from Sicily, it’s a creamier, more delicate alternative to Ligurian basil pesto. And it’s out of this world.
It’s been many moons since I last shared a savoury recipe. My quarantine has in fact been much more about baking and making sweet treats than experimenting with mains and pastas. But lately I have been making a conscious effort to try and clear out my cupboard of all the stuff that has been there for a while. That has been great not only because has avoided a lot of waste, but has also motivated me to create easy pantry recipes that I am definitely going to make over and over again. Not only they are delicious, they are also great for my wallet, since they require basic ingredients which I already have. Basically I have been making do with what I have got, and it’s been both fun and eye opening.
So it was then that, as I was sorting through my nuts shelf (am I the only one with one of those?), I realised I had half a bag of pistachios, which had been hiding there since last Christmas, when I made my White Chocolate Cranberry and Pistachio Truffles. The amazing thing about pistachios is that they last for ages. So after a quick inspection (aka I ate a few) I was sure that they were still good. And it was a no brainer for me to make a Sicilian pistachio pesto.
Yes I am Ligurian and I absolutely love Ligurian food. But I have to admit that Sicilian food is, in my humble opinion, even better. Every single time I went to Sicily, I just could not get enough of the food. They make anything taste absolutely great. Plus, the people are lovely and the landscape is absolutely stunning. Not much more you can ask from a region. And that’s why Sicily is one of my favourite places in the world. Amongst the delicious food I had during my trips, a particular meal stands out. A couple of years ago, I went to Palermo, Sicily’s capital, with my dad. One night we chose a random restaurant close to the centre to have food at. On the menu there was a very curious item: Spaghetti with Clams and Pistachio Pesto. Now, I love both pistachios and clams, but I never thought the two would go together necessarily. Intrigued, I gave it a go and oh-my-word: that was the best pasta I have ever had. And I am not saying that lightly. I would have drunk the sauce, had it been socially acceptable to do so.
Since then, I have been thinking about making pistachio pesto, but there are so many recipes online, each one different, that I was quite unsure about which one to follow. Thankfully, though, I do have some Sicilian friends. So, in order to be as accurate as possible with my recipe, I rang them up. And yes, their recipes varied a bit as well, but not by much. And I was put quite at ease when I was told that pistachio pesto is a bit like a blank canvas. Every family as a different recipe. So as long as you follow the basics, you can’t really mess it up.
Here are the basics of this great pesto:
Pistachios: the star of the show. I toast them in the oven for about ten minutes so that I can remove the skin, giving the pesto a bright green colour. Nutty and yet delicate, they really are dangerous competition for my beloved pine nuts.
Something creamy: some of my friends use single cream, others use milk. I opted for milk too because this is what I had in the fridge and it worked a treat. But if you have cream, go ahead, I have been given the all-clear so there is no reason why you shouldn’t be too.
Parmesan: I mean, is it really pesto if you are not using Parmesan? Exactly.
And that’s basically it. So simple, so easy. I like to drizzle a little extra olive oil on top of it, just to make it even creamier. Serve it over some spaghetti or any type of pasta. It’s also great if you reserve a couple of tablespoons of pasta water to make all the flavours mellow. What a way to escape quarantine to be transported to a beautiful Sicilian town.
Ingredients:
70 gr pistachios (without shells!)
6 tbsp milk (or single cream)
3 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
20 gr grated parmesan
¼ tsp salt
A pinch of black pepper
Method:
Preheat the oven to 160°C.
Spread the pistachios on a baking tray lined with baking powder and toast the pistachios in the oven for about 10 minutes. Take them out of the oven and let them cool for a few minutes.
Once they have cooled down, roll and shake the pistachios in your hands removing the majority of the skin.
Then transfer the pistachios to a blender or food processor, along with milk, extra virgin olive oil, parmesan, salt and pepper. Blend until creamy. You might want to add a bit more olive oil or milk, if you want an even creamier consistency.
Serve over pasta.
You can store the pesto in the fridge for a couple of days (covering it with olive oil) or you can freeze it for up to 3 months.
Enjoy!
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