Just like homemade salad dressings, pesto has a million variations. We like to experiment with flavors based on what’s available at the time, and we always keep it fairly simple–nuts, a hard cheese, herbs, citrus and garlic. Pesto. At least, that’s how we do it. There’s no reason to stick with tradition when you can come up with fun twists on the original. There are a lot of good premade pestos on the market, and we’ve definitely made use of them. This time, it was worth the effort to make it. Actually, it’s always worth the effort if you have the ingredients on hand. Give it a go just one time, and you’ll see how easy and delicious it can be.
One of the favorite pestos we’ve made included mint and parsley. It was bright, light and fresh. Really nice for the spring or summer. This pesto is deeper, with earthy undertones from the sage and walnuts rolled together with nutty browned butter. It is an easy fix for these chilly winter nights. And a pesto doesn’t have to drape pasta at the end of the day. You could drop a bit over chicken or fish, toss it in a grilled vegetable salad, mix it into couscous or spread it over crostini. The variations are endless and so are the applications.
Walnut and Sage Pesto Brown Butter Pasta – Serves 4
1/2 pound rigatoni, cooked
1/2 bunch fresh sage leaves
2 cloves garlic, roughly chopped
3 ounces fresh parmesan
1/4 cup walnuts, toasted and chopped
Juice of 1/2 lemon
2 tablespoons olive oil
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
Dash allspice
Kosher salt
1. Put garlic, walnuts and parmesan into a food processor and blend until crumbly. Add sage, lemon juice and a dash of allspice. Blend until smooth. Drizzle in olive oil until smooth, then salt to taste and set aside.
2. Drop butter into a large, deep pan over medium high heat and swirl until melted. Cook until brown, bubbly and butter emits a slightly nutty scent, approximately 3-5 minutes.
3. Add pasta and toss or stir until coated. Scrape pesto into the pan with the pasta and toss to coat. Cook until heated through, approximately 2-4 minutes. Salt to taste.
Click HERE for the printable recipe.
29 responses so far ↓
pigpigscorner // December 9, 2009 at 2:21 pm
Agree, the possibilities are endless!
cookbookapprentice // December 9, 2009 at 11:21 am
Oh yum! I’ve bookmarked this recipe it sounds wonderful!!
Angela@spinachtiger // December 9, 2009 at 7:05 am
What a great combination. And with the cost of pine nuts, we need new options. ($24 a pound). This is very fall and winter wonderful.
lisa (dandysugar) // December 8, 2009 at 5:28 pm
I love pesto and this recipe sounds like a nice twist on the traditional basil pesto. Must be so tasty with the sage and walnut. Nice variation!
Mardi@eatlivetravelwrite // December 8, 2009 at 5:00 pm
Oooh – I am LOVING the sounds of this – so simply yet elegant and gourmet. Nice one Duo!
Juliana // December 8, 2009 at 2:10 pm
Oh! Love your version of pesto…the pasta look so tasty…yummie!
duodishes // December 8, 2009 at 11:56 am
Yes, you can freeze pesto. Plop it into ice cube trays, freeze it, then dump the cubes in a plastic baggie or airtight container. You can defrost as necessary!
Jenn@slim-shoppin // December 8, 2009 at 11:52 am
I love the different varieties too of pesto.
I never make it often enough because I’m the only one in my family who eats it. Do you know if its okay to freeze it??
Natasha - 5 Star Foodie // December 8, 2009 at 11:51 am
Walnuts and sage is a wonderful combination, sounds amazing in a pesto with pasta – terrific idea!
Leela@SheSimmers // December 8, 2009 at 10:32 am
I can tell already that this is good. Sage, browned butter, and walnuts make a combo that never fails. Period.
Christine @ Fresh Local and Best // December 7, 2009 at 11:36 pm
I never thought to make pesto with sage, what a great idea!
Debi(Table Talk) // December 7, 2009 at 8:45 pm
Sage and lemon–what a nice pesto combination. Would be great with chicken too!
Reeni // December 7, 2009 at 8:42 pm
The versatility of pesto! I absolutely love it. This is a delicious version with sage.
Ben // December 7, 2009 at 8:32 pm
Oh that is seriously a great pesto recipe.
burpexcuzme // December 7, 2009 at 7:41 pm
Sage and walnuts? Wow, what a combo. Just add some winter squash in there, and the combo would be complete, me thinks! Haha, at least, in my opinion, since I think winter squash completes just about anything.
Charles G Thompson // December 7, 2009 at 6:17 pm
That sounds perfect for our sudden cold, wet weather — and I love pesto too. Thanks for the idea!
Teanna // December 7, 2009 at 5:34 pm
Oh wow I’m in LOVE with that pesto! I kind of want to make it right now… I have all of the ingredients on hand!
Tenina // December 7, 2009 at 4:00 pm
Pesto in a jar with a pkg of organic pasta makes a wonderful Christmas gift (as mentioned so ably in my latest post!!) hahaha
Good one guys!
meatlessmama // December 7, 2009 at 3:05 pm
I make a walnut basil pesto, but your sage pesto looks wonderful!! Great idea!
Kelly // December 7, 2009 at 2:52 pm
I love doing different variations of pesto. It tends to be one of those constantly changing recipes in my house based on whatever I have on hand.
Sues // December 7, 2009 at 2:15 pm
That photo totally makes me want to go on a major pasta binge!!! YUM to sage and brown butter and pesto, too!!!
jenn // December 7, 2009 at 12:18 pm
Yum!!! The more variety the better. And look, it’s just about time for lunch.
stephchows // December 7, 2009 at 11:41 am
great adaptation! no need to stick with traditions
Diana // December 7, 2009 at 11:20 am
Ohh this sounds wonderful! I just read something today about incorporating allspice into savory eats. Looks like a very lovely application here!
P.S. So good to see you guys on Sat!
gastroanthropologist // December 7, 2009 at 10:27 am
My husband hates pine nuts (for no other reason then his mom went through a pine nut phase when he was in high school and sprinkled it on everything), so a walnut pesto is absolutely what I need.
With some sage and brown butter pasta – yah, basically just died and went to heaven.
Angie@Angie's Recipes // December 7, 2009 at 9:06 am
I am cooking myself some pasta for dinner too~!
Bob // December 7, 2009 at 5:19 am
Oh man, some of that would be perfect right now. Looks awesome!
peachkins // December 7, 2009 at 5:18 am
The recipe definitely has a “warm” feel to it. Perfect for these chilly nights…
Daily Spud // December 7, 2009 at 2:14 am
Sheesh, I’m eating my breakfast and now I want pesto!