Trofie are a type of traditional Ligurian pasta. Their spiral shape is designed to hold the sauce, especially pesto, making each bite rich in flavor. Genovese-style pesto is precisely the hallmark of this dish. Made with fresh basil, garlic, pine nuts, parmesan (or pecorino) cheese and extra virgin olive oil, it represents the essence of true Mediterranean flavors.
In our recipe, we decided to offer a particular combination, but one that reflects the use of simple, seasonal ingredients: potatoes and green beans. Potatoes and green beans are added to this dish to give more texture and contrast in texture to the pesto, making it more nutritious but still balanced.
Have we inspired your curiosity? Read on to find out all the secrets of this one-of-a-kind dish enjoyed around the world!
1. Peel the potatoes and cut them into cubes of about 1 cm. Clean the green beans and cut them into pieces of about 3-4 cm.
2. Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Add the potatoes and green beans and cook for about 10 minutes, or until tender.
3. Add the trofie pasta to the same pot with the vegetables and cook according to the directions on the package.
4. Drain the pasta and vegetables, saving some of the cooking water. Transfer everything to a large bowl and add the pesto. Mix well, adding a little cooking water if necessary to blend the sauce better.
5. Spread the trofie with pesto on the plates and sprinkle with grated Parmigiano Reggiano cheese if desired. Top with a drizzle of raw extra virgin olive oil.
Preparation tips for pesto trofie pasta with potatoes and green beans
Trofie al Pesto with Potatoes and Green Beans is a classic recipe packed with seasoning, making it your perfect dish for a fresh and healthy summer lunch.
We suggest some small preparation tips to make the dish even more special:
Use fresh trofie if possible, as they are softer and absorb the pesto better. If you use dried trofie, cook them for a couple of minutes longer than the cooking time indicated on the package.
If you make pesto at home, use fresh basil and high-quality pine nuts. The use of fresh, good quality extra virgin olive oil is important for best flavor.
Cook the trofie pasta together with the potatoes and green beans in one pot for the perfect combination of textures and flavors. Add the potatoes and green beans to the boiling water about 5 minutes before adding the pasta. This way, all the ingredients will be cooked at the same time.
Check that the pasta, potatoes and green beans are cooked together. The green beans should be tender but still crisp, while the potatoes should be soft but not flaky.
If you make pesto at home, use an immersion blender or a mortar and pestle to achieve the perfect consistency. Do not overdo the oil to prevent the pesto from becoming too liquid.
A good extra virgin olive oil as a base for the recipe
Extra virgin olive oil is essential in this recipe.
Let's find out together what it is that makes it a key ingredient:
EVO oil is the main ingredient in the preparation of Genovese pesto, which is the main seasoning of this dish. Its quality and quantity directly affect the flavor and texture of pesto. The oil helps emulsify the ingredients, creating a smooth, well-bonded sauce.
EVO oil adds a fruity and slightly spicy flavor to pesto, which is essential to enhance the taste of basil, pine nuts, and cheese. The quality of the oil, with its aromatic notes, enriches the pesto and gives the dish a complex and appetizing flavor profile.
It helps achieve the creamy texture of pesto. If the pesto is too thick, the oil helps to soften the sauce and make it easier for the sauce to adhere to the pasta. This is especially important to make sure the pesto spreads evenly over all the trofie and other ingredients.
After cooking trofie with potatoes and green beans, it is helpful to add a drizzle of EVO oil to the pasta before mixing it with the pesto. This not only helps prevent the pasta from sticking, but also adds an extra layer of flavor and shine to the dish.
Rich in monounsaturated fats, which are considered heart-healthy fats, it also contains many antioxidants and vitamins that contribute to your overall well-being. Using it in the preparation of trofie with pesto makes the dish not only tasty but also nutritious.
For this recipe, we thought of Fruttato Farchioni Extra Virgin Olive Oil, which, thanks to its strong aroma and good intensity, accompanies the full flavor of the dish with a pleasant bitter finish.
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