L'Italo-Americano

THURSDAY, APRIL 30, 2020 www.italoamericano.org 26 L'Italo-Americano LA BUONA TAVOLA RECIPES COOKING TIPS SEASONAL DISHES FRANK FARIELLO O n e o f t h e great joys of s u m m e r i s the appear- ance of juicy, ripe tomatoes in the mar- ketplace. Tomatoes that, for once, actually taste like tomatoes! And, of course, think about tomatoes and you'll immediately think about pasta. There's some- thing about fresh tomatoes a n d p a s t a t h a t w a s j u s t meant to be. Pesto alla Trapanese makes for a nice variation o n t h e c l a s s i c summer pasta with fresh tomatoes and basil and we can consider it a Sicilian cousin to pesto alla gen- ovese. You will immediate- l y r e c o g n i z e t h e f a m i l y r e s e m b l a n c e , o f c o u r s e , thanks to the presence of fresh basil, garlic and nuts ( t h i s t i m e b l a n c h e d almonds rather than pine- nuts). But true to its south- ern roots, this pesto stars abundant ripe tomato. NB: The main recipe in this post is for the easy- peasy modern version of this pesto. The more tradi- tional mortar-and-pestle recipe, which actually pro- duces a remarkably differ- e n t d i s h f r o m t h e s a m e ingredients, is described in the Notes. Ingredients Serves 4-6 400g (1/2 lb) ripe, fresh tomatoes (see Notes) 2-3 cloves of garlic A handful of fresh basil A handful of blanched almonds (see Notes) Salt and pepper Olive oil, 1 0 0 g ( 4 o z ) g r a t e d pecorino cheese 400g (1/2 lb) of pasta of your choice (see Notes) Directions M a k e y o u r p e s t o b y adding tomatoes, garlic, basil, almond, salt and pep- per in the food processor. Process on "pulse" until the i n g r e d i e n t s a r e w e l l c h o p p e d , t h e n w i t h t h e motor running, add olive oil in a stream until the m i x t u r e c o m e s t o g e t h e r and forms a smooth sauce. The almonds should not become completely pulver- ized, however, but retain some of their crunch. C o o k y o u r p a s t a a l dente. Drain and pour into a w a r m e d s e r v i n g b o w l . Add your pesto and mix well, then add the cheese and mix again. (If the pasta i s a l i t t l e d r y , a d d s o m e pasta water to loosen it up). Serve immediately, per- haps with a dollop of extra p e s t o o n t o p , a n d w i t h additional grated cheese in a small bowl for those who want it. Notes I f u s i n g m a t u r e f r e s h tomatoes, you should peel them and remove the seeds before adding them to the food processor. Otherwise, y o u r p e s t o w i l l b e t o o watery and have unpleas- Pesto alla Trapanese is a typical sauce of Sicilian cuisine (Photo: Dreamstime) Pesto alla Trapanese (A Sicilian pesto) Continued to page 28

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