Pasta alla Genovese

Originating from Liguria, Italy, pesto is often served with trofie pasta, potatoes and green beans. Any leftover sauce can be mixed with breadcrumbs and used as a topping for chunky fish fillets, or stirred into minestrone just before serving for extra flavour.

SERVES 4

PREPARATION TIME

35 minutes

COOKING TIME 15 minutes

300g trofie pasta 200g new potatoes, thickly sliced

150g green beans 3tbsp pesto (below) FOR THE PESTO

1 small garlic clove 100g pine nuts, toasted 75g basil leaves 150ml-200ml extra virgin olive oil, plus extra, to store 1tbsp truffle oil, optional 100g Parmesan, grated

TO FINISH

Basil leaves Toasted pine nuts Parmesan shavings

1 First, make the pesto. In a food processor or blender, blitz the garlic, pine nuts and basil leaves until fairly smooth.

2 With the motor running, gradually add the olive oil – the mixture should be fairly loose and not at all dry. Add the truffle oil to taste – it has a strong flavour, so do this a few drops at a time. Stir in the Parmesan.

3 Decant into a sterilised jar, cover with a thin layer of oil to stop it drying out, then seal. It will keep for two weeks in the fridge.

4 Cook pasta according to the packet instructions in a large, deep pan of boiling salted water. Add potatoes for the last 10min of cooking time, then add green beans for the last 3min.

5 Once cooked, drain the pasta and vegetables, keeping back a cup of the cooking water, and return to the pan. Stir in the pesto and enough of the pasta cooking water to make a generously clingy sauce. Divide between 4 plates and garnish with basil, extra pine nuts and Parmesan, if you like.