This is the simplest and most delicious wild garlic pasta recipe. Stir this flavorful wild garlic pesto into pasta, and you will be happy! Ready in about 15 minutes.
Taste the spring in this quick wild garlic pasta dish. With just a few ingredients, you will have an amazing bowl of pasta in about 15 minutes. You can make a large batch of the pesto and freeze it for up to one year.
You might have noticed that I am trying to make the most of the short wild garlic season. All the recipes I’ve posted lately deal with this wonderful plant, and I plan to post quite a few more this week.
You should definitely try this flavorful wild garlic sauce, which is perfect for steaks or any other piece of meat (or eggs), the compound wild garlic butter, which is the best herb butter ever, or these vibrant green wild garlic crepes, which your kids will love. Do not forget this simple wild garlic spread or the potato soup with wild garlic, which is always a delight.
To learn more about foraging and cooking with it, have a look at What to Do with Wild Garlic.
Ingredients needed
Pasta: I had spaghetti, but you can use anything you like.
Wild garlic: You can make the sauce for this dish from scratch or use pesto you might have made before. I make two kinds of wild garlic pesto every year. One with sunflower seeds, a recipe I posted years ago, and this one with almonds. They are both equally delicious!
Almonds: Raw almonds with their skin still on. If all you have are blanched ones, they are also fine, but I always use those with the skin. (Not the shell, just the brown, thin skin/peel).
Parmesan: Always Parmesan from a wedge, not already grated. Pecorino can be substituted instead, it has a slightly different flavor, but so good!
Oil: I use mild olive oil for this recipe, nothing too bitter or too strong. A mild sunflower seed oil is fine as well. Or you can use wild garlic oil if you have it.
Other ingredients: fine sea salt and freshly squeezed lemon juice.
See the recipe card for full information on ingredients and quantities.
Can I use another kind of pesto?
Definitely. You will not be eating wild garlic pesto pasta then, but any kind of pesto you have is fine.
How to cook pasta with wild garlic pesto?
- Step #1: Place the roughly chopped leaves in a food processor. Process shortly and scrape the walls of the machine with a spatula.
- Step #2: Add almonds, cubed cheese, oil, salt, and a few drops of lemon juice. Pulse until you have a nice consistency; it will not be completely smooth. Scrape down the sides and pulse again if necessary. Adjust the taste.
- Step #3: Cook pasta. While the water cooks, make the sauce.
- Step #4: Mix with the cooked pasta. Add some of the reserved cooking water to loosen the consistency. Don’t add it all; start with a little and add more gradually until it looks right to you.
Can I make a larger batch or pesto?
Yes. Make my regular batch, which yields 4-5 small jars. Freeze for up to 1 year. It will be safe to eat longer than that, but it might lose some flavor when kept for too long.
- 300 g/ 10.5 oz wild garlic, stalks removed
- 100 g/ 3.5 oz/ about ¾ cup almonds
- 100 g/ 3.5 oz/ 1 cup Parmesan
- 200 ml/ 6.7 fl. oz/ scant 1 cup mild olive oil
- 1 teaspoon fine sea salt; add more if necessary
- 1-2 tablespoons freshly squeezed lemon juice, to taste
How to store and reheat?
The pesto keeps well in the fridge for about 2 weeks. If you’ve already mixed it with the pasta, refrigerate it in an airtight container for 3-4 days. Reheat in the microwave or on the stovetop.
When reheating, add a splash of milk and oil (or water) to the pot and stir often.
You can freeze the pesto, too.
Wild Garlic Pasta
Ingredients
- 14 oz spaghetti or other pasta, 400 g
- 3.5 oz wild garlic stalks removed, 100 g
- ¼ cup whole raw almonds with skin on, 40 g/ 1.3 oz
- ½ cup Parmesan 40 g/ 1.3 oz
- ⅓ cup mild olive oil 75 ml
- ⅓ teaspoon fine sea salt add more to taste
- a few drops of lemon juice to taste
Instructions
- Cook pasta: Start cooking the water for the pasta. Once it’s boiling, add salt generously. Cook pasta according to the packet’s instructions. Drain well and reserve about 1 cup of the cooking water.14 oz spaghetti/ 400 g
- In the meantime, make the pesto.
- Chop wild garlic: Wash and dry the wild garlic very thoroughly. Chop the leaves and place them in the food processor. Process to a rough paste, scrape down the walls with a spatula.3.5 oz wild garlic/ 100 g
- Add ingredients: Depending on the food processor, you might need to chop the almonds roughly. Add almonds, cubed cheese, oil, salt, and lemon juice and pulse until the desired consistency is achieved. You will need to scrape the walls of the food processor a couple of times in between. Adjust the taste with more salt and a few drops of lemon juice.¼ cup whole raw almonds/ 40 g + ½ cup Parmesan/ 40 g + ⅓ cup mild olive oil/ 75 ml + ⅓ teaspoon fine sea salt + a few drops of lemon juice
- Combine pesto pasta: Mix with the cooked pasta. Add some of the reserved cooking water to loosen the consistency. Don’t add all the water; start with a little and add more gradually until it looks right to you.
- Serve sprinkled with more Parmesan (Note).
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