Directions
Basil has been hanging out in my kitchen for some time: after a couple of basil cocktails and endless dishes and sauces made with this incredible aromatic plant, it’s time for a twist of the classic pasta with pesto.
I wanted to prepare lasagna with pesto, but maybe we’ll get there one day. For today, let’s be satisfied with the pasta al pesto and cuttlefish. Don’t worry. It’s a delicious dish, so you can’t complain!
Pesto and cuttlefish is a combo as old as Noah but which always manages to delight the palate and nose, especially if you cook the cuttlefish with an aromatic wine like Gewurztraminer.
The recipe for this first course is rapid and easy to make, so it is ideal for a greedy dinner, but all in all, low in calories, do not overdo it with oil, and there you have it.
The trick, or rather the tricks, for a perfect dish are two: delicate, almost steamed cooking for the cuttlefish and freshly picked fresh basil. By now, you should have a tropical basil plantation available on these sunny days!
Ingredients for making pasta with pesto and cuttlefish
4 servings
- 3 garlic
- 4 sprigs of basil. If it is from Genovese, the recipe will be 10 times better
- 50 grams of Parmigiano Reggiano (no Pecorino too strong as a flavor)
- 40 grams of pine nuts
- 50 grams of EVOO
- 30 grams of fresh marjoram (if you can’t find the Genoese)
- 4 ounces of pasta (reginette)
- 3 ounces of fresh cuttlefish
- 70 grams of white wine: Sauvignon Blanc, Chenin Blanc, Chardonnay, Fiano di Avellino
- 30 grams of breadcrumbs (optional)
- 10 grams of salt
- 5 grams of pepper
- 50 grams of fresh parsley
How to prepare pasta with pesto and cuttlefish
If you find Genoese basil, the one with the wrinkled leaves, take wagons of it or grow it on your terrace, on the balcony, but do it, please. Believe me. It is so good that it makes a difference in any basil recipe.
Wash the basil, caress it with love and then say goodbye while you put it in the blender with the pine nuts, Parmigiano Reggiano, garlic, and oil that you will pour slowly.
Let’s face it: if you have time to pound everything in the mortar, you are great, and you have all my respect, but for the home kitchen, the blender is fine even if it heats, burns perfumes, and emits radio waves that recall aliens. As always, it is a matter of time and desire.
Once the pesto has been prepared, switch to the cuttlefish: wash them, remove the head and remove the inner part of the tentacles. Cut everything into thin strips. Put the oil in a pan over low heat, crush 1 clove of garlic and let it cook. After 3 minutes, put the cuttlefish in the pan. Stir, season with a bit of sprinkling of pepper, blend with the wine and close with a lid.
Cook for 15 minutes, and the steam will make the cuttlefish tender like butter.
When the cuttlefish are ready, remove them from the pan and toast some breadcrumbs in the same pan.
Cook the pasta in salted water, drain it al dente, toss it in the pan, season with the pesto and cuttlefish, and serve it. Reginette (queens) are perfect: thanks to the crispy side, they will absorb a lot of pesto and look fabulous too!
Which wine to pair with pasta with pesto and cuttlefish?
We choose an elegant and fresh wine like 2019 Vouvray sec La Dilettante Domaine Breton that can create a bond with pesto.
If you prefer a cocktail, the Basito is perfect, but the Daiquiri also works wonders.
