Description
Pappardelle with Creamy Ricotta Pesto – pappardelle pasta in a creamy, garlicky pesto sauce infused with ricotta.
Ingredients
Scale
- 1 pound pappardelle pasta (or other variety (500g))
- 1 tablespoon butter ((14g))
- 2 cups tightly packed fresh basil leaves ((100g))
- 2 garlic cloves (finely minced)
- ½ cup extra virgin olive oil ((100g))
- 3 tablespoons pine nuts ((33g))
- 1 teaspoon lemon juice (optional)
- Salt (to taste)
- ½ cup freshly grated parmigiano-reggiano cheese ((56g))
- 2 tablespoons freshly grated pecorino romano cheese ((14g))
- 2 tablespoons butter (softened to room temperature (28g))
- ¼ cup ricotta cheese ((57g))
Instructions
For the pasta:
- Boil the pasta in salted water until al dente. The water should be as salty as sea water. I use about 2 tablespoons.
- Drain pasta, reserving some of the cooking liquid to thin the Ricotta Pesto as needed.
- Toss drained pasta with 1 tablespoon butter.
To make in the food processor:
- In the bowl of a food processor, combine basil, olive oil, pine nuts, minced garlic, optional lemon juice, and salt to taste. Process until creamy.
- Transfer to a bowl and mix in the two cheeses, butter, and ricotta.
To make with mortar and pestle:
- Combine basil, pine nuts, minced garlic, and salt to taste (coarse is better in the mortar). Using the pestle with a rotary, grinding motion, grind the ingredients into a paste against the sides of the mortar.
- Add both cheeses and the optional lemon and using the pestle grind into the paste.
- Pour in olive oil in a thin stream and beat until incorporated with a wooden spoon.
- Stir in butter and ricotta.
Combine pasta and sauce:
- Toss the Ricotta Pesto with the hot, buttered pasta, adding reserved pasta water as necessary to make a sauce that clings to the pasta. I stir about ½ cup of the reserved water into the pesto before adding to the pasta. Salt as needed to taste.
- Prep Time: 5 minutes
- Cook Time: 20 minutes
- Category: Main Course
- Cuisine: Italian
Keywords: ricotta pesto