Recipe: Walnut and Ricotta Pesto

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	Users > AngelaG > Michael Chiarello''s "Casual Cooking" > Pasta > Walnut and Ricotta Pesto

Walnut and Ricotta Pesto

1/2 cup		walnuts
5 Tbs		extra-virgin olive oil
1 Tbs		minced garlic
12		large fresh basil leaves, coarsely chopped
1 1/2 cups		Homemade Ricotta or store bought whole-milk ricotta cheese
1/2 tsp		grated lemon zest
2 Tbs		freshly grated pecorino romano cheese
		Sea salt, preferably gray salt
		Freshly ground black pepper

Preheat the oven to 350�F.

Spread the walnuts on a baking sheet and toast until fragrant and lightly browned, about 10 minutes. Let cool, then chop coarsely.

Heat 2 tablespoons of the olive oil in a small skillet over moderately high heat. Add the garlic and sauté until light brown. Scrape the garlic into a mortar or food processor and add the basil and nuts. Pound to a paste or process until finely chopped. Add the ricotta, the remaining 3 tablespoons oil, and the lemon zest, and pound or process until thoroughly blended. Transfer to a bowl and stir in the pecorino cheese and salt and pepper to taste.

Servings: 1

Recipe Type

Main Dish, Pasta

Recipe Source

In this version of pesto, cheese substitutes for most of the olive oil. It makes an easy, flavorful pasta sauce: just toss a generous amount with hot pasta, a spoonful of butter, and a little of the pasta cooking water to thin. You could use this pesto as a layer in lasagna or stuff it into pasta shells. Bake the stuffed shells with tomato sauce, or drizzled with butter and sprinkled with Parmesan, until hot throughout. I like to do this pesto in a mortar (you'll need a large one), but a food processor works as well.