Pesto alla Siciliana – 5 Minutes Delicious Pesto Sauce
This pesto alla siciliana recipe was first published on May 29, 2023.
I love a quick pasta, it’s our go-to for lunch and one of the things we can never miss having during the week. But it can easily become monotonous when you make the same pasta and the same sauce over and over again. That’s where this 5 minutes pesto alla Siciliana comes to play.
Tomato sauce is a staple when you make pasta, so why not add some delicious cheese like ricotta Parmigiano, and some pine nuts and pump up your sauce to create a delicious pesto rosso? This twist on the classic pesto alla Genovese has actually a long history behind it.
And as with everything, there are plenty of versions depending on where you come from, like pesto alla trapanese, pistachio pesto, mint pesto and aubergine pesto to mention some of them. (Cookist)
Pesto sauce was never my go-to when I was a kid and until not long ago. Simona made me realise that I love everything in pesto but not pesto itself, so I gave it another try and let me tell you, it won my heart over! It might have been the cheese in there that always put me off as a kid – I used to barely have three types of cheese, but that’s a story for another time.
Anyway, it wasn’t even the most famous pesto Genovese that won me over, but this delicious pesto alla siciliana, which I can assure you will win even the hardest of taste buds over! If you have loved already our recipes from Sicily, like biancomangiare and this pistachio liqueur, you can’t miss this pesto siciliano recipe!
What is pesto and where does it come from?
Pesto is one of the most popular sauces nowadays in Italian cuisine. The traditional pesto Genovese recipe that we know today, made its first appearance in 1863 in ‘La Cucineria Genovese’ by Giovanni Battista Ratto. This traditional Ligurian sauce is made of pine nuts, salt, garlic, basil, pecorino, parmesan and extra virgin olive oil.
Although the recipe we know and use now has origin in the 19th century, pesto has its roots in Roman Age when a sauce similar to pesto was called ‘moretum’ made of garlic, cheese, salt, herbs, olive oil and vinegar. As well as during the Middle Ages, when in Genoa, ‘agliata’ was consumed, a sauce made of garlic and walnuts.
The traditional recipe is made in a marble mortar with a wooden pestle, where the ingredients are crushed into a creamy sauce that will steal your taste buds thanks to its flavour combos and delightful smell. (Wikipedia)
Pesto is so versatile and can be used in pasta recipes, as a spread for sandwiches, a bread dip or as a marinade for meats and vegetables. Some even use it to flavour soups and stews too. A similar sauce to pesto, called ‘pistou’ is also widely popular in Provence.
What is pesto alla siciliana?
Between the many different versions of this creamy sauce, we can find pesto alla siciliana. This pesto rosso or red pesto, is a delicious take on the traditional pesto genovese, the classic basil pesto. The green colour of it is replaced by a mild brown orange thanks to the tomatoes, ricotta and parmesan in it, for the tastier Italian pesto.
Pesto was brought over to the island by the Ligurian sailors that stopped at the port of Trapani. As pesto was used by sailors as a medicine for long journeys on ships, it didn’t take long for it to spread to the mainland too.
This Sicilian tomato pesto sauce has plenty of different versions, but most of them have tomatoes, cheese, olive oil and fresh basil leaves. In pesto alla Trapanese for example, toasted almonds are used instead of pine nuts as well as pecorino instead of ricotta.
There are very different versions of this pesto alla Siciliana recipe all over Sicily and the in the rest of Italy. As we mentioned before, pistachio pesto is another option. As well you can find sun dried tomato pesto,, you can also find pesto with oranges and pesto with aubergines.
But rest assured that whatever kind of pesto sauce you decide and with whichever ingredients, you will be in for a treat!
What ingredients do I need for this pesto?
This Sicilian tomato pesto sauce calls for tomatoes first of all. We used cherry tomatoes, which are usually sweeter, but you can use whatever tomatoes you prefer or have around. Then you will need pine nuts, a lot of fresh basil leaves, extra virgin olive oil, garlic, salt and pepper. Lastly, what you will need is a cheesy side, we used fresh ricotta and parmesan cheese.
Can I substitute anything in this pesto alla Siciliana recipe?
As I mentioned before, you can use a different kind of tomato in this pesto alla siciliana. We went for cherry tomatoes because I find them sweeter and juiciest, but you can pick whatever you think is better. All of them can work well as it’s a fresh sauce.
Ricotta is another ingredient you can pick to avoid or substitute for another type of cheese. If I had the chance, I would have used ricotta salata, which is typical of Sicily and it would have made this pesto an even better sauce. in that case, you might want to blend everything before adding more salt.
Basil could be substituted for mint, which would give it a fresh taste and it’s typical of pasta pesto Siciliano. You might even be able to change the olive oil for another oil, but that might change the overall taste and texture of the pesto. As with any changes, you have to taste and work out what is best for you, as I have only tried the recipe below.
You could also decide to toast your pine nuts for an even tastier sauce. I went just for fresh ones to have a quick sauce, but toasted they would add a layer to it.
What equipment will I need for this Sicilian tomato pesto sauce?
All you will need for this Sicilian tomato pesto is a blender or food processor, nothing more. Ad everything you have to do is add the ingredients and blend everything. You could also go for the more traditional way with a mortar and pestle, but as there are tomatoes involved, it might be a bit difficult to work out. Any food processor or blender will work out well, there’s no cooking required so it’s very straightforward.
How to make pesto alla siciliana
You will start off this Sicilian tomato pesto by washing the tomatoes and basil. Pat them dry with a cloth, it doesn’t need to be perfect, just remove any excess water.
Then add the tomatoes, parmesan, ricotta, pine nuts, olive oil, basil and garlic in a blender or food processor. Blend everything for a couple of minutes until you reach a creamy texture for your pesto rosso.
Afterwards, add salt and pepper to taste. Check if you need any more salt and pepper. Transfer the Sicilian tomato pesto to an airtight container and refrigerate if you are not using it straight away. Add some olive oil on top and your pesto sauce is ready to enjoy for you and your guests!
You can also freeze the pesto alla siciliana and keep it up for a month, it will be the perfect quick sauce for a weeknight dinner or when you don’t feel like cooking. As well as a dip for a quick appetizer when you have unexpected guests.
What can I have this Sicilian tomato pesto sauce with?
You can have this pesto alla Siciliana with plenty of things. Pesto is usually paired with pasta, like these ciriole we made or with any other pasta you like, from spaghetti to caserecce and rigatoni and everything in between.
You can also have this pesto rosso with fresh bread or friselle, or any kind of bread or cracker you like. This recipe would work extremely well as a dip for grissini or fresh crunchy vegetables. It can work well as a spread for your bread and sandwiches too, like focaccia and bruschetta. Orover grilled meat and cheese or on mozzarella too, the choices are endless. Moreover, it could be great with a gnocco fritto, even if it’s a mix and match of regions!
This pesto alla siciliana is a popular sauce for pesto pasta with capers as well as something similar is used for casarecce alla norma.
Can I freeze the sicilian pesto?
You can indeed! This pesto recipe is perfect to be made in big batches and frozen for later use as we do! And it’s even quite easy to do so, you can just pop it in a jar or use some ice cube molds to have it portioned out singularly. Just add some olive oil on top to protect it from freezer burns.
The only thing you need to do is take your pesto alla siciliana sauce out of the freezer and move it to the fridge for 24 hours, which will give it time to defrost and regain its original creaminess. And as pesto rosso is not a pasta sauce you heat up, this is even more important. In case your pesto is not creamy enough, just add some pasta water on top while mixing.
Do you have more pasta sauces on the blog?
This pesto alla sicliana is not the only sauce recipe we have on the blog and actually there’s plenty more coming in the next few months, because what is a good pasta if not paired with a good sauce?
- pesto alla genovese– the cousin to the popular pesto alla Genovese and the classic pesto pasta. In this case it’s made with tomatoes and ricotta on top of the usual ingredients;
- white ragu – Delicious counterpart to the classic tomato ragu, this is one you will eat by the spoon (it happened!) and it’s perfect with bread too!
- nduja ragu – if you love spicy and ragu, this is the sauce for you! Get ready for a kick that will make your pasta even more irresistible, rest assured!
- italian pink sauce: while this is not really italian, but Italian American, this pasta sauce is so comforting we couldn’t avoid sharing it!
- friggione – coming right from Bologna, this is one of those dishes that is not exactly a sauce, but it kind of is (make it make sense), if you love onion and things that only require time to get better and better in flavour this is for YOU!
Shop the pesto alla Siciliana recipe
Pesto Alla Siciliana
Ingredients
- 500 g vine tomatoes
- 100 g parmesan
- 50 g pine nuts
- 140 ml extra virgin olive oil
- 150 g ricotta
- 1 clove of garlic
- 20 g basil
- salt
- pepper
Instructions
- Wash the tomatoes and basil thoroughly and pat them dry with a cloth.
- Add the tomatoes, parmesan, ricotta, pine nuts, olive oil, basil, and garlic in a blender or food processor.
- Blend it for a couple of minutes or until you reach your preferred texture. Then add salt and pepper. Blend again and taste, in case add more salt and pepper if you feel like it’s missing.
- Transfer to an airtight container, add a drizzle of oil on top and refrigerate if now using straight away. Enjoy!
Notes
- You can refrigerate the pesto sauce for up to three days and can stay in the freezer for up to a month.
- Regular ricotta can be swapped for Sicilian ricotta which will make the pesto even tastier. Avoid adding salt in this case unless you have tasted it before.
Did you enjoy this Southern Italian pesto recipe? Do you like having pesto sauce on your meals? Do you like having pesto pasta? Let me know in the comments!
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Pesto is kind of my life, and I’m absolutely down to branch out from my mainstay. This recipe is exciting to me! Something new to shake up my culinary experience. Thanks for sharing!
Can’t wait to hear what you think of it!