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Busiate al pesto trapanese
Busiate al pesto trapanese: Trapani's corkscrew pasta with raw tomato-almond pesto
Trapani, on Sicily's far western tip, makes its pesto with what grows nearby: ripe tomatoes, Sicilian almonds, garlic and basil, pounded raw with olive oil and a little pecorino. The story goes that Genoese sailors brought their basil pesto to the port and the Trapanesi made it their own. It is tossed with busiate, long corkscrews of durum-wheat pasta once twisted around a stalk of dried grass, and eaten all summer, often at room temperature. It tastes fresh, nutty and bright. Chef's tip: peel the tomatoes; the skins turn chewy in a raw sauce.
- Total time
- 25 min
- Difficulty
- easy
- Serves
- 4
Ingredients
For the pesto
For the pasta
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What you'll need
Spices & pantry
Fresh ingredients (3)
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Method
0/7 doneStep 1: Bring a large pan of water to the boil with 1 tbsp coarse salt. Cut a small cross in the base of each of 14 oz ripe cherry tomatoes, drop them into the water for 30 seconds, then lift into cold water and slip off the skins.
Step 2: Toast 2 ⅛ oz blanched almonds in a dry frying pan over a medium heat for 3–4 minutes, shaking, until pale gold and fragrant. Cool for a minute.
4 minStep 3: Cook 12 ½ oz busiate (dried or fresh) in the boiling water until al dente: about 12–14 minutes for dried, 5–6 for fresh.
13 minStep 4: Meanwhile pound 1 clove garlic with ½ tsp salt in a mortar (or blitz in a food processor), then add the almonds and grind to a coarse crumb. Add 1 oz basil leaves and pound to a rough green paste.
Step 5: Add the peeled tomatoes and work them in until broken down but still a little chunky. Stir in ¼ cup extra virgin olive oil, 1 ⅜ oz pecorino and ¼ tsp dried chilli flakes. The pesto should be pink-orange and loose.
Step 6: Drain the pasta, keeping a cup of the water, and tip it into a large bowl. Add the pesto and toss with a splash of pasta water until creamy. Common mistake: tossing it in the hot pan on the stove; the raw tomato cooks and the basil turns dull and flat.
Step 7: Serve straight away, or leave it 10 minutes to serve warm, as many Trapanesi prefer in summer.
Nutrition per serving
- Calories
- 560 kcal
- Protein
- 18 g
- Carbs
- 72 g
- Fat
- 23 g
- Fibre
- 6 g
Nutrition values are estimates.
KrazyBadal
Good to know
- How long does busiate al pesto trapanese take?
- About 25 minutes in total: 10 minutes to prepare and 15 minutes to cook.
- How many people does it serve?
- 4 as written. Change the servings above the ingredients and every amount scales to match.
- Is it vegetarian?
- Yes. It has no meat or fish.
- What can I use instead of garlic?
- ½ tsp garlic paste or ⅛ tsp garlic powder per clove.
- What can I use instead of ripe cherry tomatoes?
- Tinned chopped tomatoes: a 400g tin for about 6 tomatoes (in cooked dishes, not salads).
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