Description
Pasta Alla Trapanese is a unique, vegetarian incredibly flavorful pasta dish that will have your family and friends coming back for more.
Ingredients
Scale
- 1/3 cup slivered almonds
- 12 ounces cherry tomatoes (about 2 1/2 cups) or 6-8 roma tomatoes quartered
- 1/2 cup fresh basil leaves
- 1 clove garlic, minced (about 1 teaspoon)
- 2 or 3 pepperoncini peppers, chopped (peppers in vinegar) about 2 Tablespoons
- 1 teaspoon of salt
- 1 pinch of red pepper flakes (optional–I like 1/4–1/2 teaspoon)
- 1/3 cup extra virgin olive oil
- 1 lb pasta (I like spaghetti or fettuccini)
- 1/2 cup fresh parmesan cheese, grated plus more for garnish on top
- Freshly ground black pepper
Instructions
Note: If you don’t have a food processor, a blender will work. In step 2, pulse ingredients until roughly chopped, then proceed with the recipe, reducing processing times by half.
- Toast almonds in small skillet over medium heat, stirring frequently, until golden and fragrant, 3 to 5 minutes.
- In a food processor, process cooled almonds and salt until almonds are pulverized. Next add tomatoes, basil, garlic, pepperoncini peppers, salt and red pepper flakes and process until smooth, about 1 minute. Scrape down the sides of bowl with rubber spatula. With machine running slowly drizzle in oil, taking about 30 seconds to do it.
- Meanwhile, bring 4 quarts of water to boil. Add pasta and 1 Tablespoon of salt. Cook until al dente. Reserve about 1/2 cup of cooking water, drain the rest and transfer pasta back to cooking pot.
- Add pesto and 1/2 cup parmesan to cooked pasta, adjusting consistency with reserved pasta water.