Casarecce with Basil Pesto, Salami, Tomatoes & Silverbeet

I don’t know why I get sucked in to buying my fruit and vegetables from the supermarket. Out of convenience I guess. I’ve returned to my local fresh produce market to buying them from now on and there is definitely a difference in flavour, quality AND price.

I bought what seemed like a ‘freshly picked that morning’ bunch of silverbeet, Roma grape tomatoes plus various other vegetables for the week. I decided to team them with the lovely range of pasta and pesto from Barilla.

I chose the casarecce pasta for this dish because it is a large pasta shape and would be well covered in the basil pesto plus be a nice sized bite with the large chunks of fresh tomato, salami and silverbeet. Casarecce originates from Sicily, but is also typical of other regions in the centre-south of Italy. This tasty shape, whose name means ‘homemade’, is an interpretation of the Arabic “pasta busiata” obtained with the “bus”, the thin reed of a plant that in the past was used to wrap up the pieces of dough.

The Barilla Pesto Alla Genovese is made in the traditional method from the freshest basil leaves in Liguria and are combined with the delicious taste of Pecorino Romano and Grana Padano cheese. Prepared without preservatives, this is the most natural pesto, with the unmistakeable fragrance of summer. I’ve used this on top of bruschetta (and straight out of the jar). It’s just beautiful.

Basically any fresh vegetables could be used in this dish or any of the other pastas from the Barilla range. It’s great experimenting with flavours and textures and using whatever you have on hand.

Disclaimer: I was given a range of Barilla pasta and sauces. All photos and opinions are my own.

Casarecce with Basil Pesto, Salami, Tomatoes & Silverbeet

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