Pesto Trapanese
Ingredients
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- 2 cups cherry tomatoes – halved
- 1/2 cups blanched almonds
- 2 cloves garlic – peeled
- 2 cups fresh basil leaves – loosely packed
- 1/2 cups pecorino cheese – finely grated
- 1/2 cups extra-virgin olive oil
- 1/2 tsp kosher salt
Instructions
1. Set up a large mortar and pestle. If using a food processor instead, fit it with the metal blade.
2. Add the garlic and kosher salt to the mortar and pound to a smooth paste, about 1 minute, until fragrant and sticky.
3. Add the blanched almonds and crush to a coarse, sandy meal with a few small pieces remaining, 2–3 minutes; the mixture should start to cling together.
4. Add the fresh basil leaves and work them into a vivid green paste, 1–2 minutes, until the aroma is strong and the texture is cohesive but still rustic.
5. Add the cherry tomatoes and crush until their juices form a chunky, spoonable sauce, 1–2 minutes; avoid overworking to keep some small tomato pieces.
6. Stir in the pecorino cheese and extra-virgin olive oil until the sauce looks glossy and lightly thickened, 30–60 seconds.
7. Let the pesto rest 5 minutes for the flavors to meld, then use immediately or refrigerate up to 2 days. For pasta, toss with hot, just-cooked noodles, loosening as needed with a spoonful of pasta cooking water.
8. Food-processor option: Pulse garlic and salt to mince, add almonds and pulse to a coarse meal, add basil and pulse to a coarse paste, add tomatoes and cheese and pulse in short bursts to a chunky texture, then with the machine running briefly, stream in the oil just until combined.
Pesto Trapanese is a bright, uncooked Sicilian sauce that marries sweet-tart tomatoes, fragrant basil, creamy almonds, sharp pecorino, and the bite of raw garlic, all bound by lush extra-virgin olive oil. The result is a coarse, spoonable pesto with a rosy hue and a balance of fresh acidity and nutty richness. It is typically tossed with long, twisty busiate pasta, where its chunky texture clings beautifully, but it’s also excellent on crostini or spooned over grilled fish and vegetables.
In Trapani, on Sicily’s western coast, the sauce evolved at a maritime crossroads. Genoese sailors brought the idea of pesto to the port, and locals adapted it with the island’s almonds and tomatoes, creating a distinctly Sicilian expression. Known as pesto alla Trapanese or pasta cull’agghia in dialect, it reflects the region’s produce and olive oil culture, and remains a staple of home kitchens and traditional trattorie throughout western Sicily.