Everybody loves a quick and tasty pasta dressing, and there is nothing better than a pesto. All you need is a blender. Combine all the ingredients, and—voilà—you have a sauce. Everybody by now is familiar with pesto made with basil and pinoli nuts, but during one of my visits to Sicily, I enjoyed a pleasant pesto surprise: the pinoli were replaced with pistachios. Although Sicily is known for its delicious pistachios, 98 percent of the pistachios eaten in the United States come from California. So do try this pesto rendition.

　　

Ingredients

makes 3 cups pesto, enough for 1 pound pasta, serving 6 people, and 1 1/2 cups extra (see note)

　　1/2 teaspoon salt, plus more for pasta pot

　　3 packed cups fresh basil leaves

　　2 packed cups fresh parsley leaves

　　1 cup unsalted pistachios, toasted

　　8 garlic cloves, peeled

　　1 pound spaghetti

　　1 1/2 cups plus 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil

　　1/2 cup grated Grana Padano or Parmigiano-Reggiano

　　

Step 1

Bring a large pot of salted water to boil for pasta.

　　

Step 2

Pulse the basil, parsley, pistachios, garlic, and salt in a food processor. Pour in 1 1/2 cups of the olive oil in a slow, steady stream. Process to make a smooth paste, stopping to scrape down the sides of the bowl occasionally.

　　

Step 3

Slip the spaghetti into the boiling water, and cook until al dente. Scrape half of the pesto into a large skillet, and add 1 cup pasta water (no need to heat the sauce). Use a spider to drain pasta and transfer to the skillet. Drizzle with remaining 2 tablespoons olive oil, and toss to coat the pasta with the pesto. Toss with the grated cheese and serve.

　　

notes

Step 4

You can freeze the remaining half of the pesto for future use. Just pack it into a plastic container and pour a thin film of olive oil over the top. Thaw in refrigerator before using. Or you can cut the recipe in half, if you just want enough for 1 pound of pasta.

　　

Step 5

Toasting any nuts brings out their oils and flavors, so always toast them just before using. Here are two quick options: You can set the nuts in a baking pan and toast in a 350-degree preheated oven, shaking them periodically, until golden on all sides. Or you can toast them in a sauté pan on top of the stove, shaking them often to make sure they do not burn.

　　Reprinted with permission from Lidia's Italy in America by Lidia Matticchio Bastianich and Tanya Bastianich Manuali. Copyright © 2011 by Lidia Matticchio Bastianich and Tanya Bastianich Manuali. Excerpted by permission of Knopf, a division of Random House, Inc. All rights reserved. Buy the full book from Amazon or Bookshop.