Testaroli with Pesto Sauce

Testaroli with Pesto Sauce

from Tuscany, Phaidon Press, 2011.

The different types of pasta are always worth investigating. I found this one in Tuscany, a beautifully put together book which manages to combine regional information on Tuscany together with good looking food.

The book is a definite encouragement to actually visit the different regions. An added incentive is a list of food festivals throughout the year. Photographs of the food and the area are scattered throughout the book together with loads of fascinating information.

The testaroli comes from the Massa-Carrara region (known for Carrara marble). The pasta is made in a particular type of dish called a ‘testo’. From the description is sounds rather like a tagine and that’s what I made my testaroli in.

It was very similar to making a pancake although the batter was just flour and water with a pinch of salt. Once the pancakes are made they are cut into diamond shapes—not very satisfactorily in my case as it’s somewhat difficult to turn a circular shape into regular diamonds unless you discard a lot.

The pesto was a breeze as this is one item that I make regularly, although each recipe I see is slightly different. The one I make is made up, though the ingredients are generally the same as those in recipes. Mine is made without measuring and with the addition of chopped red chillies. Nevertheless, in this case, I followed the given recipe which included two types of cheese: parmesan and pecorino.

The resulting meal was tasty though I think I overcooked the pasta as it was a little on the soft side—and it looked like it too. I think I might give it another try sometime and see if I can master it as I rather enjoyed the process.

Taste: ✔✔✔

Ease of cooking: ✔✔✔