Pasta al pesto

Preparation

1. 01

   Step 01

   Place the garlic slices and a pinch of coarse sea salt in the bottom of the mortar. Crush with a wooden pestle until it forms a smooth paste.

2. 02

   Step 02

   Add the pine nuts to the mortar and crush together with the garlic until you have a coarse mixture. Do not grind too finely; it should remain slightly textured.

3. 03

   Step 03

   Add the basil leaves to the mortar a few at a time. Crush in circular motions each time, incorporating the leaves into the sauce while preserving their color. Repeat until all the leaves have been added.

4. 04

   Step 04

   Add the grated Parmigiano-Reggiano and Pecorino Sardo cheeses to the mortar. Stir together with the other ingredients until the cheese is evenly distributed throughout the sauce.

5. 05

   Step 05

   Drizzle the extra virgin olive oil into the mortar in a thin stream, continuing to stir. The pesto should reach a creamy, pourable consistency. It should not be too thin; it should be thick enough to cling to the pasta.

6. 06

   Blanching in boiling water

   Bring a large pot of generously salted water to a boil. Cook the Trofie pasta in the boiling salted water according to the package instructions (approximately 8–9 minutes). Reserve about one cup of the pasta cooking water.

7. 07

   stirring over low heat

   Drain the pasta and transfer to a wide serving bowl. Add the prepared pesto sauce on top. Add the reserved pasta water a little at a time and stir over low heat for about 1 minutes. The pesto should be evenly distributed throughout the pasta; the sauce should be glossy and creamy.