Name: Fusilli con Pesto alla Trapanese
Prep time: 20 min
Cook time: 10 min
Total time: 30 min
Yield: 4 servings
Ingredients: 400 g fusilli; 300 g tomato; 100 g almonds; 40 g basil; 2 clove garlic; 80 g pecorino; 80 ml extra-virgin olive oil; 0 salt; 0 chili flakes

Fusilli con Pesto alla Trapanese

A sun-soaked Sicilian pasta tossed in a raw almond and tomato pesto, no stove needed for the sauce.

🥬Vegetarian

🇮🇹 Italy ·Europe · $

20 min Prep

10 min Cook

30 min Total

4 portions

Pesto alla trapanese is the red pesto of western Sicily, born in the port city of Trapani where Genoese sailors and local cooks traded ideas. Instead of pine nuts and a smooth green paste, this version pounds blanched almonds, ripe tomatoes, fresh basil, garlic, and pecorino into a rustic, chunky sauce bound with extra-virgin olive oil. Nothing in the pesto is cooked, so the flavor stays bright, fresh, and intensely summery. Traditionally it dresses busiate, the long hand-twisted Trapanese pasta, but fusilli works beautifully because its spirals catch the coarse sauce. Only the pasta meets heat, which keeps this an easy dish for hot days. A splash of starchy pasta water at the end loosens the pesto into a glossy coat without a single pan of sauce on the burner.

Ingredients

400 g fusilli traditionally busiate

Pesto

300 g tomato ripe cherry or datterino, seeded

100 g almonds blanched, skins removed

40 g basil fresh leaves

2 clove garlic

80 g pecorino grated, ideally Pecorino Siciliano

80 ml extra-virgin olive oil

0 salt to taste

0 chili flakes optional, to taste (optional)

Ingredients

4 portions

Ingredients

400 gfusilli traditionally busiate

Pesto

300 gtomato ripe cherry or datterino, seeded

100 galmonds blanched, skins removed

40 gbasil fresh leaves

2 clovegarlic

80 gpecorino grated, ideally Pecorino Siciliano

80 mlextra-virgin olive oil

salt to taste

chili flakes optional, to taste (optional)

Instructions

Prepare the almonds and tomatoes

1

If using whole almonds with skins, drop them into boiling water for 1 minute, drain, and slip off the skins once cool enough to handle. Pat dry.
~5 min
2

Wash the tomatoes, cut into wedges, and scoop out the seeds and watery pulp. Roughly chop the flesh and set it in a colander for a few minutes to drain off excess juice.
~5 min

Make the raw pesto

1

In a mortar (or food processor), pound the garlic with a pinch of salt into a paste. Add the almonds and crush until coarsely broken but still chunky, not a smooth cream.
2

Add the basil leaves and a little more salt and pound until torn and fragrant. Work the tomatoes in next, crushing with rotating strokes from the center outward, then loosen with the olive oil.
~5 min
3

Fold in the grated pecorino and chili flakes if using. Taste and adjust salt. The pesto should be rustic and chunky, not a uniform puree.

Cook the pasta and combine

1

Bring a large pot of well-salted water to a boil and cook the fusilli until al dente, following the package timing.
~10 min
2

Reserve a cup of the starchy cooking water, then drain the pasta. Toss the hot pasta with the raw pesto in a large bowl, loosening with a splash of pasta water until the sauce coats every spiral.
3

Serve right away, finished with a little extra pecorino and a drizzle of olive oil.

Credits & Inspiration

Mangia Bedda
Sicilian-Canadian cook's version covering almond blanching and tomato prep.
Siciliani Creativi in Cucina
Sicilian food blog detailing the traditional mortar method with Avola almonds, Nubia red garlic, and busiate.
Recipes from Italy
Italian recipe with measured quantities for the raw almond and tomato pesto.
Coley Cooks
Recipe stressing a coarse, chunky texture and seeding the tomatoes, with a chili note.
Cooking with Ayeh
Step-by-step mortar and pestle method with pasta water finishing.