Spaghetti with bright green basil microgreen pesto and roasted cherry tomatoes on the vine. How to blend pesto so it stays green and make it creamy without cream.
INGREDIENTS
- 250 g - cherry tomatoes on the vine
- 1 tbsp - olive oil for the tomatoes
- 25 g - pine nuts
- 40 g - basil microgreens for the pesto
- 30 g - Parmesan for the pesto
- 1 clove - garlic
- 1 tsp - lemon juice
- 50 ml - extra virgin olive oil for the pesto
- salt to taste
- 200 g - spaghetti
- 10 g - Parmesan for serving
- 5 g - basil microgreens for topping
STEPS
- Heat the oven to 400°F (200°C). Put the cherry tomatoes on the vine in a baking dish, drizzle with 1 tbsp oil, season with salt, and roast for 15-20 minutes, until the skins burst and the tomatoes release their juices.
- Toast the pine nuts in a dry skillet for 2-3 minutes, stirring, until golden, then let them cool.
- Put 40 g basil microgreens, the pine nuts, grated Parmesan, garlic, lemon juice, a pinch of salt, and the oil in a blender. Pulse in 2-3 second bursts until you have an even but not smooth paste.
- Cook the spaghetti in well-salted water for 1 minute less than the package says. Before draining, scoop out 50 ml of the pasta water.
- Drain the pasta and return it to the pot with the burner off. Add the pesto and 2-3 tbsp pasta water and toss until the sauce turns creamy.
- Divide the pasta between plates and top with the roasted tomatoes and their juices, shaved Parmesan, and 5 g fresh basil microgreens.
Basil Microgreens in Pesto
Basil microgreens have the same spicy aroma as mature leaves but are more tender and almost fiber-free. In pesto you can tell: the sauce comes out bright green and silky. The flavor is a little softer and sweeter than classic basil pesto, without the slight bitterness coarse stems can add.
Roasted cherry tomatoes bring sweetness and acidity to the pasta, and their juices mix with the pesto right on the plate.
About the Ingredients
Basil microgreens: 40 g for the pesto and 5 g for topping. That’s a lot for a variety usually used a few sprigs at a time, so if you have less, see the variation below. Use green basil; purple basil turns the sauce grayish.
Pine nuts are classic. Toasted sunflower seeds are a cheaper swap with a similar flavor.
Parmesan: grate it yourself, since pre-grated cheese is often dry and contains anti-caking agents. Any aged hard cheese works.
Spaghetti or linguine made from durum wheat. The starchy pasta water makes the pesto creamy without cream.
Technique: Pesto Without Heat
Basil darkens with heat, and heat comes from both long blending and a hot pot on the stove. So the pesto is blended in short pulses and tossed with the pasta off the heat, loosened with a little pasta water instead of being warmed through. Why basil and other herbs are fussier to grow than salad greens is explained in our wiki: basil and aromatic herbs.
Variations
- Half and half: 20 g basil microgreens plus 20 g mature basil leaves. The color is a little darker, the aroma the same.
- With lemon basil: swap part of the green basil for lemon basil microgreens for a fresher pesto.
- Dairy-free: 1 tbsp nutritional yeast instead of Parmesan, plus a bit more salt.
- With shrimp: sauté 200 g shrimp with garlic and add them to the pasta with the tomatoes.
Serving and Storage
Serve the pasta right away. Pesto on its own keeps in the fridge for up to 3 days in a jar under a thin layer of oil, which keeps air out. To freeze, spoon it into ice cube trays so you can take out portions for up to 2 months. Add the Parmesan after thawing.
Another microgreen pesto: pea microgreen pesto.
CHEF'S TIPS
Let the nuts cool completely before blending: warm nuts heat the pesto and it darkens.
If the pesto is too thick, thin it with pasta water, not oil: the starchy water makes the sauce creamy rather than greasy.
