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In Amalfi, Italy, pesto-making chefs skip the classic fresh basil in favor of strips of local lemon peel, “sfusato amalfitano”. Combined with almonds, Parmesan and oil, it makes a bright, fragrant pesto that’s perfect for mixing with pasta. In our version of the recipe from our cookbook “Milk Street 365: The All-Purpose Cookbook for Every Day of the Year,” a little sugar is added to reduce the lemon’s acidity and replicate the flavor of the big, sweet lemons on the Amalfi Coast. For extra tang, we also add lemon peel to the pasta cooking water; the oil from the peel lightly perfumes the spaghetti, enhancing the pesto’s lemon flavor even more.
Rather than grinding the pesto with a mortar and pestle – as with basil pesto – we use a food processor. The peel is removed from the lemons in large, thin strips, leaving the bitter white pith behind. Half of the strips are added to the pasta water, along with a little salt and sugar; the rest is added to the bowl of the food processor, then pulsed with the almonds and cheese until the mixture resembles coarse sand. Olive oil is then added and processed until fully dissolved.
Cook the spaghetti in lemon-scented pasta water until just cooked through, then toss with the pesto and some of the starchy pasta cooking water. Stir, adding more pasta water as needed, until the noodles are coated. Don’t forget to remove the lemon peel from the boiling water before adding it to the pasta. If the lemon peel is left in the spaghetti when you cook it, the peel can make the water bitter, and make it difficult to remove strips from the cooked strands of noodles.
Spaghetti with Lemon Pesto
Start to finish: 25 minutes
Servings: 4
Material:
– 4 lemons
– Kosher salt and ground black pepper
– 1½ teaspoons white sugar, divided
– 1 pound spaghetti
– ½ cup chopped almonds
– 1 ounce Parmesan cheese (unpeeled), cut into 1-inch-thick pieces, plus finely grated Parmesan cheese for serving
– ⅓ cup extra-virgin olive oil, plus more for serving
– 2 tablespoons finely chopped fresh chives
Instruction:
1. Using a vegetable peeler (preferably a Y-style peeler), peel the peel from the lemon in long, wide strips; try to remove only the colored part of the peel, not the bitter white pith underneath. You should get about ⅔ cup of peel strips.
2. Combine 2 quarts water, 1½ teaspoons salt, 1 teaspoon sugar, and half of the peels in a large pot. Bring to a boil and cook for 2 minutes, then remove and discard the peels.
3. Add the spaghetti to the pot and cook until al dente. Reserve 1½ cups of the cooking water, then drain the pasta and return it to the pot.
4. Meanwhile, in a food processor, combine the remaining zest strips, almonds, Parmesan, remaining ½ teaspoon sugar, and ¼ teaspoon each of salt and pepper.
5. Continue stirring the mixture until it resembles coarse sand, about 10 to 20 seconds. Add the oil and continue stirring until the oil is well incorporated (the mixture will not be smooth), about 10 seconds; set aside until the pasta is ready.
6. Add the pesto and ¾ cup of the reserved pasta water to the spaghetti in the pot, then stir to combine. Add more reserved pasta water if needed to ensure the pesto coats the noodles evenly. Stir in the chives.
7. Add salt and pepper to taste. Drizzle with extra oil and serve with grated Parmesan on the side.
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