This week for the forty-fourth recipe I've made for Thirty Minute Thursdays, cooking our way through Giuliano Hazan's Thirty Minute Pasta book, I made Spaghetti al Pesto di Noci (Spaghetti with Walnut Pesto) on page 56.
The ingredient list: bread, milk, garlic, walnuts, fresh oregano, extra virgin olive oil, and spaghetti.
In the introduction to this recipe in the book, GH says that in Liguria, Italy (which is located in the Italian Riviera), walnut pesto is just as common as basil pesto. I was intrigued...making pesto from walnuts? It also called for fresh oregano and I had that in my CSA box this week so it seemed like a great time to give it a go to see what walnut pesto was all about.
Well, it turns out that it is all about greatness, both in taste and ease of preparation. I have 8 of my most favorite herbs growing in pots each summer but fresh oregano isn't one of them as it is very strong and tends to take over a recipe in short order, usually we prefer dried oregano. This recipe called for just a small amount and that was plenty to keep it's flavor pronounced but yet not giving rein to take over the entire flavor profile. I think using dried oregano would give this a different taste, so using the fresh was a nice change, and very tasty in just the right way. I might have to plant some oregano in a ninth herb pot next year.
Definitely delicious, definitely a repeat recipe. (No cheese in this recipe so those who have problems with cheese, this might be just the pesto recipe for you.)
Click Here if you wish to see the recipes Margaret has made from this book, we each choose the recipe that works best for us each week. If you'd like to join in, let us know by leaving a comment in the comment section here.