Ingredients:
2 cloves garlic
1 teaspoon salt
1 lemons, zest of, minced
2 tablespoons pine nuts
2 tablespoons shelled raw pistachio nuts
3 cups basil leaves
1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil
1 cup heavy cream
3/4 cup parmesan cheese, grated
2/3 cup water
Directions:
Crush garlic, lemon zest, salt, pistachios, and pine nuts to a smooth, thick paste with a mortar and pestal.
Transfer to a blender and add 1/2 cup olive oil.
Blend until very smooth.
Add basil leaves in batches, stopping the machine and pushing the leaves down from time to time until a smooth paste is achieved.
Transfer to a sauce pan.
Add 2/3 cup of water to the blender and pulse/clean to get the rest of the paste, scrapping down the sides.
Pour water into sauce pan with basil paste.
Heat, stirring to combine.
When heated through, stir in cream and cook until sauce has thickened a bit.
Remove from heat and stir in cheese.
Serve over rough pasta such as Rusticane-Pasta or Lanterne-Pasta.
Servings: 8
Time preparation: 30 min.
Time total: 40 min.