Prep Time: 15mins         Cooking time: Approx. 20mins         Serves: 4

We cooked this pasta at the beginning of June for a gathering of forty people here at Duchess Farms. It was one of those warm evenings where everyone eventually drifted towards the serving bowls, helping themselves to another spoonful before sitting back down in the sunshine. We loved every minute of it.

The recipe itself, though, takes us much further back. Before Carleschi, we ran a company called Seriously Italian, serving fresh pasta and handmade pestos at more than twenty street food markets across London every week. Pistachio pesto was always one of our favourites. Rich but fresh, wonderfully creamy and incredibly versatile, it became one of those recipes we never really stopped making.

Here we've paired it with young courgettes and asparagus, but it's equally at home with mushrooms, green beans or prawns. In truth, once you've made the pistachio cream, all you need is one beautiful vegetable, good pasta and a generous handful of chopped pistachios scattered over the top. It's one of those dishes that's almost impossible to stop eating.

INGREDIENTS

• 400g Carleschi Spelt Mezzi Rigatoni
• 180g shelled unsalted pistachios (or salted pistachios, shelled)
• 2 small garlic cloves, peeled with the germ removed
• 1 generous handful fresh mint leaves
• Small handful fresh basil leaves
• 80–100ml extra virgin olive oil
• 60g freshly grated Parmigiano Reggiano
• 5 small courgettes (or 3 medium)
• 1 bunch fresh asparagus
• Sea salt (only if using unsalted pistachios)
• Reserved pasta cooking water
• Extra chopped pistachios to finish
• Fresh mint or basil leaves (optional)

Instructions

• Bring a large pan of generously salted water to the boil and cook the mezzi rigatoni until just al dente.
• Meanwhile, place the pistachios into a food processor. If using unsalted pistachios, add a generous pinch of sea salt. Pulse until they resemble a fine, sandy crumb. If using salted pistachios, simply process them on their own.
• In a separate blender or food processor, blend together the garlic, mint, basil and extra virgin olive oil until completely smooth and creamy.
• Transfer both mixtures to a large serving bowl and stir them together by hand. Fold in the grated Parmigiano Reggiano.
• A small but important tip: don't blend the pistachios together with the garlic and olive oil. Over the years we've found that doing everything at once produces a heavier, pastier texture. Preparing the pistachios separately before combining everything at the end gives a much lighter, silkier pistachio cream.
• Slice the courgettes into thin rounds. Cut the asparagus diagonally into bite-sized pieces and slice the tips lengthways in half.
• Heat a generous drizzle of extra virgin olive oil in a frying pan and gently sauté the vegetables with a pinch of salt until just tender. They should still have a little bite.
• Before draining the pasta, reserve two cups of the cooking water.
• Add the vegetables to the serving bowl with the pistachio cream. Pour in one or two ladles of the hot pasta water and stir until the sauce loosens into a silky, pourable consistency.
• Drain the pasta and immediately add it to the bowl.
• Toss everything together, adding a little more pasta water if necessary until the sauce lightly coats every piece of pasta. It should be glossy, creamy and fluid rather than thick.
• Finish with a generous scattering of chopped pistachios, a few fresh mint or basil leaves if you like, and an extra drizzle of good extra virgin olive oil.
• Place the bowl in the middle of the table and let everyone help themselves.

Buon appetito!