Trenette al Pesto

August 24, 2016
Featured, Pasta, Recipes
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In modern times the term Pesto has become a generic name for just about any combination of herbs blended with garlic, olive oil, nuts and cheese. However, the original Pesto is from Genoa in the Liguria region of Italy and is basil based and contains pignoli (pine nuts). Some people are turned off by the pignoli and may not want to use them, but for me they have always been as essential as the basil.

I remember once a few years back at our local farmer’s market, there was one vendor that specialized in the hard sell. They would offer you a “special deal” if you bought 2 balls of mozzarella instead of one. Always trying to talk you into buying that one extra thing. It typically doesn’t bother me, but once I bought some bread and mozzarella from them, and after trying to convince me to buy extra mozzarella and bread the guy asked me “Do you want some pesto to go with that?” I politely declined saying that I like to make my own pesto. Even after I paid he was undeterred, saying“Are you sure? No pignoli in this pesto!” As if that was a big selling point. As I walked away I responded “Then I really don’t want it! It’s not Pesto without pignoli.”

I have mellowed out since then and I try not to be quite so inflexible any more. After all, someone might look at my recipe and criticize it for using a food processor and not a mortar and pestle, which is the traditional method (the name pesto actually comes from the word pestare, which means to pound or grind). You may have a really good reason for leaving out the pignoli (allergy, for instance), but that doesn’t mean you can’t take advantage of some nice fresh basil in the summer and enjoy this classic pasta dish.

Trenette is a narrow, flat pasta that is common in Liguria, where pesto originated, but if you can’t find it, linguine is always a good substitute. In Genoa, the capital of Liguria, they often make this with potatoes and green beans, as seen in the Disney/Pixar movie Luca. I have included alternate instructions for making it this way, Trenetto al Pesto Genovese, if you came looking for that version.

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4.6 from 9 reviews

Total Time: 30 mins
Yield: 4 1x

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Ingredients

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For Trenette al Pesto, Genovese, with Potatoes and Green Beans

4 medium potatoes, peeled and thinly sliced
1/2 pound green beans, washed and ends broken off

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Instructions

Put 1/2 cup of olive oil, pine nuts, garlic and a nice pinch of salt in a food processor or blender, start mixing and add the basil a few leaves at a time processing to a creamy consistency.
Stir in the cheese by hand, mixing well. I find this achieves a much better consistency than if you blend the cheese in using the food processor or blender.
Bring a large pot of liberally salted water to a boil. Add the trenette and cook until al dente.
Meanwhile, in a large sauté pan add 2 tablespoons of olive oil and the pesto, turn heat on low and heat through.
Reserve 1/4 cup of water from the pot then drain pasta and add to sauté pan with pesto, and turn the heat up to medium. Add the reserved pasta water and stir vigorously, coating the pasta completely with the sauce.
Transfer the pasta to individual serving plates and serve immediately.

For Trenette al Pesto, Genovese, with Potatoes and Green Beans

Prepare the pesto as instructed in steps 1-2 above.
Bring a large pot of liberally salted water to a boil. Cut the green beans into 1 inch pieces and add the potatoes and green beans to the boiling water. Cook until just tender, about 10 minutes and remove with a slotted spoon and set aside.
Add the trenette to the boiling water and cook until al dente.
Meanwhile, in a large sauté pan add 2 tablespoons of olive oil and the pesto, turn heat on low and heat through.
Reserve 1/4 cup of water from the pot then drain pasta and add to sauté pan with pesto, and turn the heat up to medium.
Add the potatoes, green beans and the reserved pasta water and toss well, coating the pasta and vegetables completely with the sauce.
Transfer the pasta to individual serving plates and serve immediately.

Prep Time: 15 mins
Cook Time: 15 mins

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14 Responses

Excellent recipe! I totally agree about the generalization of pesto – pesto is truly what this recipe is in my mind. My mother and one sister’s husband still make it this way (I hope anyway) – now I can make it at home. Thank you! I think my brother in law still might even use the mortar & pestle – so I’ll send him a pat on the back from “the italian chef” Thanks for posting!
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I just made a big batch the other day, and make it your way. Small World. I use it on Ravioli, Pasta, Pierogi, and sometimes on a sandwich as a spread.
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helped me cook for my family they loved it
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immaculate.
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Oh man, you have to toast the pine nuts, it makes the flavor even better!
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Grow basil specifically to make pesto during the summer as well as freezing the ingredients less the cheese to get through the non basil season during the winter. Any suggestions on how to prevent the basil from darkening after using the food processor? Have heard blanching my help but hesitant about the boiling water. Any suggestions would be appreciated.
Thanks,
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too much oil. Measured the oil perfectly and there was a soup of oil on the bottom of every plate. You should also add the cheese in the food processor (every other recipe says the same) when we followed it this way, the cheese solidified and didn’t spread evenly
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Way to much oil I mean I wouldn’t know if it was good or not I’m only 17 and I love cooking so I wanted to try this and I did everything right but it really taste like nothing it was a very plain dish i really wasn’t impressed but at least it’s edible.
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Reflects the movie well. This is true evil… hiding green beans in pasta. How could you do that to a kid? I replaced the green beans with pineapple. Yum.
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I have started sending al pesto as tiffin during his office hours
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Even though I am not a big fan of Fusion Cuisine, I disagree with the definition that is given to Pesto. I understand changing one thing for another thought to be distasteful. Like changing cashews for pignoli is one thing. But once you change the basil and the nuts (or leave them out) you really don’t have a Pesto. It would be like calling a chimichurri a Pesto or a Pesto a chimichurri. One a great Italian cuisine and the other a great Argentine cuisine. Let’s leave the classics to themselves. Lets not allow Fusion Cuisine culture to change the way the things are and belittle the classics.
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Great article,
Just letting you know that in Italian pignoli are people who are very very detail oriented (too much detail oriented). The ingredient you’re refferring to is pinoli.
😉
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1. Maybe search the definition of pignoli and you’ll understand the usage of the word. https://www.google.com/search?q=pignoli+nuts&ie=UTF-8&oe=UTF-8&hl=en-us&client=safari&zx=1698288090598
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I’m not at all Italian and don’t have any of that heritage, but my wife wanted to try this after we watched the movie Luca. The first time I made it we couldn’t find any pine nuts to use and, despite what people said in the comments, I thought we wouldn’t need them. It still tasted good without them but I couldn’t shake the feeling that someone’s nonna was mad at me.
So I tried again. This time I managed to find some pine nuts and even used fresh basil from my dad’s garden.
HOLY. $#*!. The pine nuts are NECESSARY. The flavor is so much better and the texture is incredible. I make this recipe as often as possible now.
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