Ingredients for 4 people:350 g pici350 g broccoli30 g grated aged Pecorino cheese 70 g Extra Virgin Olive Oil (+ 2 tbsp to sauté the broccoli) 40 g pistachios10 fresh basil leaves 2 cloves of garlic1 hot chilli pepper salt pepper
Wash and clean the broccoli, divide them into florets and cook in boiling, salted water for 5 minutes. Strain them an put them in a bowl with water and ice cubes, to maintain the bright colour. When the florets have cooled down, remove them from the water and pat them dry with a cotton tea towel or kitchen paper. Heat 2 spoonfuls of olive oil, the chilli pepper broken in half and the garlic in a heavy-bottomed frying pan; add the broccoli florets and sauté for a couple of minutes. Turn off the heat, leave to cool and then transfer into a blender with the pistachios, basil leaves (washed and patted dry), salt, pepper and olive oil. Blend until the mixture becomes creamy (if it seems too “dry”, add some more oil). Cook the Pici in plenty of boiling, salted water; strain them when “al dente” (setting aside some of their cooking water), put them in a bowl with the broccoli pesto and grated pecorino, stir well and add 1-2 spoonfuls of the cooking water to amalgamate everything better. Serve hot with a sprinkling of freshly ground pepper and a drizzle of olive oil (in the right season “Olio Novo” would be perfect!).