Trofie al Pesto

Recently I have been obsessed with hand-shaped pasta, where you don’t need to get out a machine you can just form the shapes from the rested dough. It is super comforting and really connects you to the dish. Trofie pasta is one of mine and my partners favourites, it originates from Liguria in Italy and is best served with a freshly made pesto.

Serves 4

Ingredients:

• 400g 00 flour

• 4 eggs

• 80g basil

• 80g pine nutes

• 50g parmesan

• 150ml EVOO

• 3 garlic cloves

Method:

• For the trofie pasta, make a well in the flour then crack in the eggs. Mix everything together and knead until a smooth dough forms - around 7 minutes.

• Wrap the dough in cling film and leave to rest in the fridge for 30 minutes.

• Meanwhile, for the pesto in pan on a medium heat gently toast the pine nuts until they are golden brown.

• In a pestle and mortar, grind the basil with additions of the pine nuts, parmesan and garlic cloves until everything forms a paste. Reserve some of the pine nuts for topping the pasta later. You can also use a food processor or blender for this step if desired.

• Next, slowly pour in the olive oil and combine using the pestle to emulsify the pesto. Taste and season with salt and pepper then set aside until use.

• To shape the pasta, take a small ball of the dough and using you palm, roll it up a chopping board. Roll the dough back down the board, at a diagonal angle, applying pressure to your pinky finger to create the classic curved shape. Repeat with all of the dough.

• Cook the pasta until al dente for a couple of minutes in salted boiling water. Drain once cooked and stir the pesto through, then season with salt and pepper. Transfer to a plate and top with parmigiano reggiano and a generous drizzle of olive oil.