Last Night's Nums: Pesto Alla Trapanese

...or, Pesto with Tomatoes and Almonds.

This is yet another gem from the glorious pages of Cooks Illustrated.  Don't let the marinara-like appearance fool you: this is indeed pesto.  "Pesto alla trapanese" refers the Sicilian village of Trapani, where pesto is made with tomatoes in addition to basil, and with toasted almonds instead of pine nuts.  The result is robust and delicious: both savory and fruity with a little kick.

I'll start by saying that this recipe gets a bit expensive in the winter, as grape tomatoes aren't readily available from anywhere nearby.  This is not a recipe that you localvores could swing this time of year.  Though, I'm planning on having a grape tomato plant this summer, then making huge quantities of this sauce to freeze.  It's that good.

I tend to leave recipes from "the test kitchen" untouched... there's very little room for improvement with the bulk of their recipes!  However, there are some minor adjustments in my version based on personal preference.

You most certainly will need a food processor for this dish.  Which you should have anyway; it's one of the best investments for a cooking enthusiast. 


Pesto Alla Trapanese

¼ cup slivered almonds (I buy them pre-slivered, but if you buy them whole with the skins on, you need to remove the skins by blanching them for 2 minutes)
12 oz grape tomatoes, sliced in half*
½ cup packed fresh basil, coarsely chopped
2 large garlic cloves, pressed
1/3 cup extra-virgin olive oil
½ cup Parmesan cheese
1 tsp red wine vinegar
½ tsp red pepper flakes**

1.    Toast almonds in small skillet over medium heat, stirring frequently, until pale golden and fragrant, 2-4 minutes.  Cool almonds to room temperature.
2.    Process cooled almonds, tomatoes, basil, garlic, red pepper flakes, vinegar, and 1 tsp salt until smooth, about 1 minute.  Scrape down sides of bowl with rubber spatula.  With machine running, slowly drizzle in oil, about 30 seconds. 
3.    Add sauce and ½ cup Parmesan cheese to 1lb cooked pasta.  Serve immediately.

* Cherry tomatoes can be used, but we like the flavor of grape tomatoes better.  Still, this time of year cherry tomatoes seem to be a bit less expensive and are also good.
** I have used up to 1 teaspoon of red pepper flakes, which was the perfect amount for a spicy (less fruity) sauce.  It's important to remember that a few red pepper flakes go a long way.

Other notes: I like linguine for this dish, as recommended by Cooks Illustrated.  I can imagine one pound of any other pasta would also work well, however, the sauce coats and sticks to the long, flat noodles very well.  Cook's Illustrated also recommends reserving 1/2 cup cooking water from the pasta for adjusting the consistency of the sauce if it doesn't spread easily enough.  I've never had this problem, as it always comes out just right.

Also notice that, like all traditional pesto, the sauce itself is never cooked, though it does heat through with the pasta.  If you're not a fan of the mostly-raw garlic flavor of traditional pesto, simply cut the garlic to one clove.

Enjoy!