A little history..
As with most traditional recipes, the history of pesto goes back - almost - to the dawn of time, even if its first mention as pesto alla genovese appears in cookbooks only in the 19th century, with a list of ingredients and indications of proportions to make it. But before being codified and recorded, this recipe underwent many evolutions and modifications. Some people trace its origins back to Roman antiquity. Indeed, in an almost gastronomic poem called Moretum, attributed to the great Virgil (70-19 B.C.), a peasant picks aromatic herbs (rue, coriander and ache) as well as garlic in his garden, and goes home to pound it all by the fire in his mortar with salt and a cheese crust... Of course there is no basil, pine nuts or olive oil here, but the principle of pesto is clearly there. The Romans brought variations to this recipe by incorporating nuts, fresh cheese, oil... Another similarity is that the word moretum gave mortarium (mortar) and the word pesto comes from the Genoese verb pestâ (in Italian pestare), which means to pound. In both cases, therefore, the mortar is an essential, almost an "ingredient" of the famous pesto. And among the possible ancestors of the beautiful Genoese sauce, there is still theagliata, a medieval sauce based on garlic and vinegar, which was particularly popular during the time of the Maritime Republic of Genoa to preserve food on ships.
The ingredients
Today, pesto alla genovese has strict specifications and ingredients, seven in all: basil, especially Basilico Genovese PDO from Prà, a district of Genoa, which has small, very fragrant leaves without the slightly minty taste that other varieties have, and which is obviously the best basil in the world, Pisan pine nuts, delicate, parmesan cheese (dry cow's milk cheese) and Sardinian pecorino cheese (dry sheep's milk cheese), sea salt, Vassalico garlic, which is very easy to digest and has a more subtle taste than the other varieties, allowing the other flavors to develop, and extra virgin olive oil from the Ligurian Riviera PDO, which is particularly sweet and fruity. And, of course, the marble mortar and wooden pestle!
The recipe
As for the proportions, it's not easy to decide... There are as many recipes as there are cooks! Depending on your taste, you may use more cheese or more garlic... Here is a recipe to try to make a pesto alla genovese
in the best way! Don't forget that you need to use the highest quality ingredients!Get a large bunch of basil (about 70 g), 40 g of parmesan, 20 g of pecorino, 40 g of pine nuts, a clove of garlic, a pinch of coarse sea salt and about 100 ml of olive oil.
Detach the basil leaves, wash and drain them, taking care not to crush them. Crush the garlic and pine nuts (which can be lightly dry-roasted in a frying pan beforehand to bring out their flavour) with the coarse sea salt, add the basil leaves, then the two types of cheese that have been grated and, still crushing, pour in the olive oil until you have a smooth, homogeneous paste.
Obviously this raw sauce can be used for any dish, and even for sandwiches, but it is traditionally served with pasta, and in Genoa, in restaurants, it is usually served with trofie, small pasta a few centimeters long and twisted, forming tapered tips at their ends. Another recipe for pasta alla genovese includes potatoes and green beans. In a large quantity of salted water, cubes of potatoes and fresh green beans are cooked, then after about ten minutes the pasta is added. When it is cooked, drain it and add the pesto!The variants
Apart from pesto alla genovese, there are many other recipes, and pesto has incredible variations in its ingredients. Finally the only requirements are: firstly the sauce must remain raw, and secondly the ingredients, whatever they are, must be of very high quality. Otherwise anything is possible: you can even find pesto without garlic! Each cook is free to make his own recipe, with a base of olive oil, oilseeds, cheese, herbs... Pine nuts can easily be replaced by walnuts, almonds, pistachios, pecans, macadamia nuts, cashews, peanuts... Only the hazelnut does not seem to absorb enough oil, but it is still very tasty... In the same way, all fresh herbs can be used, such as arugula, dill, coriander, parsley, spinach... But also some herbs with essence such as sage or marjoram, which give a more powerful flavor Not to mention all the other recipes without green herbs, such as pesto rosso made with dried tomatoes... The possibilities are truly endless!
But we won't offend our Genoese friends: pesto alla genovese is of course the best of all pestos and its fame all over the world is well deserved. A spoonful of this tasty and creamy sauce would give energy and flavor to any piece of bread, so a visit to Genoa is inconceivable without tasting a real pesto made with all these finely selected ingredients. Because yes, even if you've already tasted quality homemade pestos, here your taste buds will truly tingle with happiness! Beware, however, you will immediately get a taste for it and there is no turning back. No more pesto in a jar! Fortunately, now you have the recipe... And by the way, what if you brought back a mortar from your stay in Genoa?
