UNICO

A pesto
panoply
CUISINE
Recipes
by Dolores Sennebogen
Ah, fresh basil. Each time I gather
some from the pot on my patio I stop for
a moment to deeply inhale its heavenly
scent. The botanical name for sweet basil
is ocimum basilicum, with ocimum derived
from the Greek term for fragrant. At
this time of year when we’re using up
the last of our homegrown basil, Liguria
comes to mind. The region is most famous
for Christopher Columbus, whom
we celebrate this month, and for its wondrous
pesto alla Genovese. Basil flourishes
in its mineral-rich terrain, and
some would say it is the world’s best.
Liguria is also known for its outstanding
fruity olive oil, so it was inevitable that
these two palate pleasers came together
in the form of this alluring condimento.
I was recently treated to pesto made
by my friend Dina Giordano. She told me
her recipe came from
Genoa and is part of
fond childhood memories.
“While we were in
Genova visiting my
Mom’s cousin Gina, she
cooked us Linguine with
Pesto Sauce, which we
had not tasted before. I
cannot tell you how de-
licious it was to us. I said right away, ‘Zia
Gina, please, can you give us the recipe
to take back with us to Brooklyn? We love
it!’ Zia was delighted and she wrote the
recipe without hesitation. Back home,
Mom made it often and it became a tradition
on Friday nights and during Lent.”
Mille grazie, Dina, for sharing your
memories and Zia Gina’s recipe. I’m offering
additional recipes that star pesto
sauce, including a recipe that my mother
was given by her friend Mary Parisi almost
50 years ago.
Continues on page 72 …
FRA NOI for ComUNICO September 2015 71