Vibrantly coloured and flavoured, pesto is ideal for saucing pasta as well as served as a dip, or with chicken, fish and lamb.
Serves: 4
INGREDIENTS
500 grams dried orecchiette pasta
200 grams bocconcini
2 tablespoons roughly chopped roasted almonds
Pesto
1 cup frozen peas, thawed
1 cup small florets of raw broccoli
small handful basil leaves
⅓ cup roasted almonds
1 clove garlic, crushed
2 tablespoons lemon juice
⅓ cup freshly grated Parmesan
¼ cup olive oil
sea salt and freshly ground pepper
METHOD
Pesto: Place all the ingredients in a food processor and process until well chopped but not totally smooth. Season well and thin with a little water if too thick. Set aside.
Pasta: Cook the pasta in a large saucepan of salted, boiling water until al dente.
Drain and reserve ¼ cup of the cooking water. Tip the pasta back into the saucepan and add the pesto and the cooking water. Stir gently over a medium heat until hot.
To serve: Divide the pasta between bowls and top each one with a couple of ripped bocconcini. Drizzle with a little olive oil, a grind of pepper and the chopped almonds.
Pantry Note: Orecchiette pasta is a type of pasta from Puglia, shaped like a small ear (in Italian “ear” is “orecchio”). Each one is about 2cm in size and looks like a small white dome with a thinner centre than edge and a rough surface.
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In Dream Escape, we journey from Japan and Morocco to Italy, India and beyond, sharing recipes inspired by travel, heritage and comfort. We celebrate the champions of the Outstanding Food Producer Awards, explore the stories and recipes of chefs shaped by their cultural roots, and warm up with everything from West African soups and slow-braised lamb to porchetta, butter chicken and beef noodle soup. Alongside destination menus, Scandinavian sweets and cosy pub classics, Chrisanne Terblanche shares her favourite street-side dining spots in Bangkok, while Yvonne Lorkin explores red wine varietals. This issue, we invite you to slow down, turn the pages and escape through food.