Radicchio Pesto (Italian)

The strong and slightly sour flavour of radicchio pesto pairs excellently with Busiate pasta made from tumminia, an ancient Sicilian grain. The natural sweetness of this pasta balances the pesto's slight sourness, creating a harmonious blend of flavours in the dish. Because radicchio has quite a strong taste and can be sour I served this pesto with Busiate pasta made from tumminia, an ancient Sicilian grain. The sweetness of the pasta nicely off set the slightly sour sauce to make this busiate with radicchio pesto perfect.

1 round red radicchio (200 g)
2 Tbsp. pinenuts, toasted
1 clove garlic, peeled and chopped
2-3 Tbsp. Parmigiano Reggiano cheese
½ cup extra-virgin olive oil
sea salt

Wash the radicchio and cut it into strips taking care to remove the most bitter white parts.

Soak the leaves in cold water for 30 minutes, drain and pat dry.

Put the chopped garlic, radicchio, toasted pinenuts and a pinch of salt into the blender.

Pulse until the contents are quite small then add the Parmesan and oil.

Pulse everything together a couple more times.

Makes 4 servings.