Tortiglioni with Pistachio Pesto
Toss your favorite pasta in a super tasty pesto made with fresh basil, parmesan cheese, and pistachio. Done in under 30 min, it is the perfect dinner for busy weeknights
Yield: 2
Calories: 1306kcal
Materials
- 200 g pasta
- 200 g pancetta
- 20 cherry tomatoes
- ½ onion
- ½ tsp paprika
Pesto:
- 100 g unsalted pistachio
- 30 g parmesan
- 5-6 basil leaves
- 30 ml oil
- a pinch of salt
- ground black pepper | to taste
- 125 ml starchy water from pasta
Instructions
- Cook pasta in a large pot of boiling water with a pinch of salt until al dente - cooking time depends on the pasta you use, cook according to your pasta package instructions. Take out 1 cup of pasta cooking water just before you drain (not earlier, otherwise, it won’t be starchy enough)
- While the pasta is cooking, cut the pancetta into cubes, chop the cherry tomatoes in 2, and slice half an onion.
- Cook the pancetta for 3-4min in a pan on medium-high heat. When cooked, remove it from the pan leaving the oil released by the pancetta.
- In the same pan, add the sliced onion with half tsp of paprika and cook it with the pancetta oil for 1 min before adding the cherry tomatoes to the pan. Cook for another 2-3 min.
- Prepare the pesto: combine the pistachio with parmesan, basil, oil, salt and pepper in a food processor or blender.
- Process until the mixture is well blended but still has some texture.
- Add 100ml of pasta cooking water to the pesto and blend again until combined.
- Toss the pasta into the pan with the onion and tomatoes, and add the pancetta and pesto, adding water if required. Better silky than sticky.
- Garnish with pistachio and basil (optional).
Video
Notes
- Tortiglioni is used in this recipe however you can use any pasta you like.
Nutrition
Serving: 1 serving | Calories: 1306kcal | Carbohydrates: 102g | Protein: 43g | Fat: 83g | Saturated Fat: 20g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 18g | Monounsaturated Fat: 40g | Trans Fat: 0.2g | Cholesterol: 79mg | Sodium: 954mg | Potassium: 1379mg | Fiber: 10g | Sugar: 12g | Vitamin A: 1431IU | Vitamin C: 42mg | Calcium: 240mg | Iron: 5mg