Lidia Bastianich's Spaghetti and Pesto Trapanese

I adore Lidia Bastianich.  I have watched her on TV for years and I have several of her cookbooks.  We went to her restaurant in NYC and I can honestly say I have never had better food in my life.  She was recently on DR. OZ.  She made the following recipe.  Yields 4-6 servings.

Ingredients:

¾# cherry tomatoes, very ripe and sweet (I bought what was available)

12 large fresh basil leaves

1/3 C whole almonds, lightly toasted

1 plump garlic clove, crushed and peeled

¼ t peperoncino (Looked on line, it is dry and comes from a hot pepper, I used my Chinese hot sauce)

½ t kosher salt, plus more for the pasta water

½ C EVOO

1# spaghetti

½ C freshly grated Parmigiano-Reggiano

Directions:

1.      Rinse the cherry tomatoes and pat them dry.  Rinse the basil leaves and pat dry. 

2.      Drop the tomatoes into a blender jar or food processor bowl followed by the garlic clove, the almonds, basil leaves, peperoncino, and salt.

3.      Blend for a minute or more to a fine puree; scrape down the bowl and blend again if any large bits or pieces have survived.

4.      With the machine still running, pour in the EVOO in a steady stream, emulsifying the purée into a thick pesto.  Taste and adjust the seasoning.  (Refrigerate if not using in a couple of hours.  Can be kept up to 2 days.)

5.      To cook the spaghetti, heat 6 qts. water, with 1T salt, to a boil. 

6.      Scrape all the pesto into a big warm bowl.

7.      Cook the spaghetti al dente, drain and add to the pesto. 

8.      Toss to coat the spaghetti and sprinkle the cheese all over and toss again. 

9.      Serve immediately.

I’ve probably tasted something worse, but not in a long time.