Spaghetti with Basil Pistachio Pesto

Name: Spaghetti with Basil Pistachio Pesto
Yield: makes 3 cups pesto, enough for 1 pound pasta, serving 6 people, and 1 1/2 cups extra (see note)
Ingredients: 1/2 teaspoon salt, plus more for pasta pot; 3 packed cups fresh basil leaves; 2 packed cups fresh parsley leaves; 1 cup unsalted pistachios, toasted; 8 garlic cloves, peeled; 1 pound spaghetti; 1 1/2 cups plus 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil; 1/2 cup grated Grana Padano or Parmigiano-Reggiano

December 14, 2011

Everybody loves a quick and tasty pasta dressing, and there is nothing better than a pesto. All you need is a blender. Combine all the ingredients, and—voilà—you have a sauce. Everybody by now is familiar with pesto made with basil and pinoli nuts, but during one of my visits to Sicily, I enjoyed a pleasant pesto surprise: the pinoli were replaced with pistachios. Although Sicily is known for its delicious pistachios, 98 percent of the pistachios eaten in the United States come from California. So do try this pesto rendition.

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