Pesto

In Italy we do take cooking seriously and at the same time we are definitely ‘provincial’, in the sense that we are, sometimes exaggeratedly, attached to our region or even town, so it will come to no surprise to you that the Ordine della Confraternita del Pesto [the Cavaliers of the brotherhood of pesto] has deposited its own brand at the Provincial bureau for industry and commerce, along with the name "vero tipico pesto genovese" [real typical Genoa pesto, and not pesto a lá Genovese or similar denominations which are already per se synonymous of counterfeits] and the relevant recipe, specifying the ingredients and where they should come from.

Basically the ingredients are basil from Liguria, garlic, mature cheese form Sardinia, extra virgin olive oil from Liguria and mature grana cheese (similar to parmesan cheese); to this ‘base’, other ingredients can be acceptably added, such as pine nuts, walnuts, different types of creamy cheeses.

Below is my version, I hope not to incur in the Confraternita’s rage should they think it is too customised!

What you need:

a big bunch of fresh basil leaves
2 cloves of garlic
3 teaspoons of pecorino cheese
3 teaspoons of grana cheese
½ teaspoon of coarse salt
1-2 teaspoons of pine nuts
10-15 tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil

How you do it:

Wash the basil and let dry. Put it into a mortar and crush it with garlic, salt and pine nuts. Add the cheese teaspoon by teaspoon and mix well after each instalment with your pestle. Mix with the oil and let rest. Boil the pasta in abundant, salted water. When it’s time to season, dilute the pesto with a little of the water in which you cooked the pasta and add more cheese if you wish.