Serves 4
Ingredients
For the pesto:
50g basil leaves
30g toasted pine nuts
30g parmesan, plus extra for serving
1 garlic clove
100ml olive oil
225g casarecce
200g waxy potatoes (such as Desiree)
200g green beans
Juice of half a lemon
Method
Put the pine nuts, garlic, basil, a pinch of salt and pepper in a food processor. Pulse a couple of times to get things going then, with the motor running, gradually pour in the olive oil. Stop blitzing once the mixture is well combined but still retaining some texture. Transfer to a large mixing bowl (one that is large enough to eventually hold the pasta, potatoes and beans too), stir in the parmesan and taste for seasoning.
Bring a large pot of salted water to the boil. Peel the potatoes and cut into roughly 1cm cubes. Trim the green beans and cut in half. Add the potatoes to the boiling water and cook for 3 minutes then add the pasta and cook for 5 minutes before adding the green beans for a final 3 minutes. You may need to adjust your strategy of what is added to the pot, when, depending on the cook time of your pasta. Use the packet as a guide and know that the potatoes need about 10 minutes in total to cook and the beans need about 3 minutes. Tweak your timings accordingly.
Once the potatoes and beans are tender, and the pasta is al dente, reserve a big mug of pasta water then drain. Tip everything into the bowl of pesto. Toss well, adding splashes of pasta water and shimmying the bowl around to create a glossy sauce that coats the pasta. Just before serving, squeeze in the juice of half a lemon and give it a final toss. Serve with extra drizzles of olive oil and gratings of parmesan.
