A Helping Of True Love On A Plate

One of the very first dishes I prepared for my fiance, now my lovely wife, was a very simple pasta with pesto. I learned to make this dish as a single man who many times didn't have much time for cooking. So I learned this one off by heart. And it was so good she asked me to teach her the recipe.

The Magic Moment I Knew That She Loved Me

Fast forward to the first time I came to Japan and to make me feel at home, my lady made me pasta and pesto to perfection, following every step I had taught her back in Spain.

It really made my day, not least of all because, although I love Japanese cuisine, there are times I deeply yearn for something familiar. I find the taste from the mixing of basil, parmesan cheese, garlic, pine nuts, and extra virgin Spanish olive oil, so comforting, it totally relaxes me. And knowing this was what inspired my wife to make it for me. She knows only too well from her own experience of living in a foreign land, at times life can be quite stressful.

The Recipe From Heaven

The recipe for pesto includes about ten fresh basil leaves, preferably from your own plant in the kitchen. According to professional recipe books, the leaves have to be chopped small. However, I once knew a professional chef who told me it is better to tear the leaves into pieces as a tear releases more of the freshness and flavor from the leaves than a cut does.

Next, you need about 500gm of pine nuts, which at times is not possible, or prohibitively expensive. At my local Carrefour supermarket in Spain, the packets of pine nuts are so expensive they put them into special security packs with an alarm attached! You can of course use various other types of nuts, such as walnuts, but they do not produce the same wonderful flavor as pine nuts. Like the basil, the nuts have to be chopped small on a chopping board with a sharp knife.

Likewise, the garlic also has to be chopped small. How much garlic you use depends on your own taste. I find two or three cloves to be more than sufficient.

When the basil, pine nuts and garlic are all chopped small, you need a wooden mortar and pestle to crush them together into a dryish paste. Once that task is done, add 500gm of parmesan cheese in powder form. Then pour about half a cup of the olive oil into the mortar bowl and gently stir it all around with the pestle-crushing tool.

Some internet recipe sites tell you to use a blender instead of a mortar and pestle, but I prefer to use traditional methods. They will also tell you to use other types of cheese, but again I prefer the more authentic parmesan. Yet others suggest gently roasting the pine nuts and chopped cloves of garlic. It's entirely up to you. You can also add a pinch of salt and pepper for seasoning, but I personally don't feel the need for that.

All you have to do now is gently boil the pasta of choice, in my case I always use rigatoni. The pasta only needs about eleven minutes, some say 8-10, by which time it will be what is called al dente. Now all you have to do is put the pasta on a plate, add the pesto, add a little garnish in the form of more broadly cut or torn basil leaves, perhaps even some halved cherry tomatoes, a little sprinkle of dry parmesan, and savor the marvelous authentic taste of Italy. Of course, a cold glass of white Italian wine is almost mandatory.

An Affirmation Of Success For You

One of the great things about preparing this dish is it can be done in about fifteen minutes. What's more, since you will be using uncooked fresh ingredients, there is no chance of under or over-cooking, apart from the pasta. This means you can easily produce spectacular results, it is what you might call a fool-proof dish. Even better, the dish is very healthy and I find that it sits very comfortably in my digestive system. There is one more ingredient I almost forgot to mention, you have to add a good helping of love to it. Believe me, whoever you prepare this dish for will love it, and will no doubt love you even more.