Pesto alla Villa

Here is a recipe that reflects the simple elegance of a Ligurian pesto. Liguria, the moon shaped region that hugs the Mediterranean just south of France, is the home of pesto. Each town is proud of its own unique recipe, and a culinary tour could easily incorporate a tasting town to town, accompanied by a bottle of Liguria's white DOC. This recipe reflects the basics of what makes a pesto work, and lends itself well to a villa as all you need is a pot, bowl (or a jar of good pesto) and spaghetti to prepare a night's good meal.

Short cut: Purchase a small jar of prepared Ligurian pesto. Long cut: One needs either a food processor or great patience and toil to make an adequate pesto, as the leaves of basil must be chopped into a near dust. So if while at your villa you are looking for a productive punishment for your children, this would be it:

Wash and dry the basil and discard the stalks. Finely chop the basil, garlic and pinoli while adding 1/2 of the grated cheese. This is the tortuous part on the kids - we are talking finely chopped here. As you near the end of the "finely chopping" add the balance of the cheese, mix thoroughly with oil to create a thick creamy paste. Be sure to reserve a cup of the water from your drained pasta. In a bowl mix your cooked (al dente) pasta with the pesto and slowly add the drained water until your mixture has a creamy coating to your liking. - Makes 4 servings.

For noodles, try a flat noodle. It's more interesting.

Buon appetito!