It uses orchiette pasta and potatoes and simple, but delicious home made pesto. I first came across this recipe this at the River Cafe where they always cook seasonally and write up new menus every day based on what’s fresh and available!
Serves 4 – 6
Wee Buns Cookery School
What you'll need
A food processor and saucepan!Ingredients
- 350g orecchiette
- 200g waxy potatoes ( charlotte or vivaldi )
- 200g fine green beans, top & tail and cut into bite size pieces
Pesto
- Large bunch of basil ( approx 60g ) washed and dried.
- 1 clove garlic peeled
- ½ lemon
- 200g parmesan
- 40g pine nuts toasted until light golden
- 3 – 6 tablespoon olive oil
Method
- To make the pesto put the basil, garlic and pine nuts in a food processor and blitz until you have a smooth paste.
- Add the olive oil and half of the parmesan, a squeeze of lemon, a pinch of salt and pepper and blitz again.
- Taste and correct the seasoning, adding more salt or lemon juice to taste.
- Add more olive oil as needed.
- Meanwhile bring a large pan of water to the boil for the pasta , add a good pinch of salt.
- Cook the potatoes until just cooked through, then peel and slice and drizzle with olive oil and keep warm in the oven.
- Cook the green beans in boiling salted water until just cooked. Keep warm with the potatoes.
- Add the pasta to the boiling water and cook until al dente. Strain but keep some of the cooking water.
- Add the pasta back to the pan with the pesto , potatoes and green beans . Season and taste and loosen the sauce with the pasta cooking water.
- Serve in warm bowls with more parmesan.
