Pesto alla Ligure - Chef Recipe by Mattia Senesi

Ingredients

At Tessuto, Chef Mattia Senesi (ex-Secolo) brings the soul of Italy to every plate and his pesto alla ligure is no exception. Raised in the rolling countryside of Tuscany, Mattia learned from the Nonnas in his village before his culinary journey took him from a farm to the kitchens of Monza, where he mastered traditional techniques before developing his own signature style.

Now, at Tessuto, Mattia honours his Italian heritage with a personal touch and his pesto alla ligure is a perfect example - fresh, vibrant and made with the same love and passion that first sparked his love for cooking.

2 bunches of fresh basil
300mL extra virgin olive oil
90 g pine nuts
120 g grated aged Parmigiano-Reggiano
80 g grated Pecorino Romano cheese
Salt to taste
4-5 ice cubes
1/2 potato
30 g green beans
400 g pasta, trofie, strozzapreti or other short pasta

Method

Pick your basil, then thoroughly wash and drain.

In a food processor, combine the basil leaves, extra virgin olive oil, pine nuts, ice cubes and a pinch of salt, and blend until it’s roughly done.

Add both the Parmigiano-Reggiano and Pecorino Romano cheese to the mixture and blend until the pesto is smooth.

Taste and adjust. If the pesto is too thick, you can add a little more olive oil to reach your desired consistency.

Fill a pot with water and bring to the boil.

Dice half of the potato and clean the green beans from top to bottom.

Salt the boiling water and drop the pasta, along with the potato (they should take the same time to cook as long as they are not cut too big), into the water.

When the pasta is about two minutes from being cooked, drop the beans into the water as well.

Strain everything and in a cold bowl, combine the pasta and pesto.

Sprinkle with some more Parmigiano Reggiano and a few pine nuts for decoration.

Note: the reason ice cubes are added to the pesto is to keep the temperature of the basil low. If it is blended for too long, the leaves will warm up and get darker, whereas we want them to remain a nice and bright green colour.

Credits: Tessuto

Photo Credits: Tessuto