Pesto sauce done right can be immeasurably gratifying, and it's absolutely delightful when taken out of its pasta confines and baked into pesto bread.
Our pesto bread recipe calls for slicing open an entire loaf and filling it with cheese and pesto before closing it back up and baking. It's fresh, fragrant, and undoubtedly satisfying.
Pesto Sauce
It's no secret that pesto is one of the most popular Italian sauces. There are dozens out there, but none can match the taste of homemade Genovese pesto, freshly made – unless it's an artisan jarred version of pesto di Prà, a variety cultivated in Genoa that's considered the crucial ingredient for a "real" Genovese pesto. The leaves, which are curvy and small to medium in size, absorb the characteristics of the terroir, which manifests itself beautifully in the sauce.
Pesto itself is rather simple, made from extra-virgin olive oil from the Liguria, pine nuts, basil (preferably from said Prà), grated Pecorino and Parmigiano, a pinch of salt, and a clove of garlic. Purists pound it all together in a mortar and pestle while the practical tend to leave the mixing to their food processor.
Pesto Bread
Ingredients:
1 loaf of wheat bread (around 1 lb.)
5 oz. Emmental cheese
5 oz. pecorino cheese, grated (preferably Tuscan Pecorino)
5 oz. homemade pesto
extra-virgin olive oil
Method:
Preheat the oven to 400°F.
Begin by slicing the bread lengthwise, without separating the two halves, so that it opens like a book.
Remove the soft inside and combine with the Emmental, Pecorino, and pesto. Set aside some of the grated Pecorino to sprinkle on the bread slices later.
If the mixture is too thick, add a drizzle of extra-virgin olive oil. Mix until uniform then stuff the bread with this filling.
Close the bread and place it in the oven for 10 minutes.
Once out of the oven, slice the bread and set the slices on a serving dish.
Complete with a drizzle of oil and the Pecorino flakes.