tagliatelle with fresh corn pesto

Summer just seems like such an exciting time to eat, don’t you think?

Especially when you’re from the Midwest, like me. There is just something so special about those few short summertime months when farmers’ markets seem to explode on every corner and you finally get a chance to see what’s been hibernating under those inches of snow all winter (or sometimes the fickle fall and spring). I imagine it’s quite different in places like California and even Vancouver (who has this awesome year-round market), where local ingredients are a prominent staple all year round.

And to have these slight changes in your eating habits is an incredible jumpstart for your now dormant reserved-for-fresh-and-local-foods taste buds. I nudged them awake while shucking sweet corn in preparation for the Tagliatelle with Fresh Corn Pesto I made to top my first attempt at homemade pasta (!). And the dish was certainly a pleasant surprise as well.

My family is one accustomed to habit. And not only that, but one habitually aware of the fact that we are, in fact, accustomed so. Every summer – around this time in July actually – we would make our way west across our Midwestern state to the same state park, where we would pitch our same camper and same tents, eat our same on-the-road lunch of peanut butter and jelly sandwiches and red grapes, make the same jokes about all things from cows to towns with whopping populations of 8 along the way, and then head to the same restaurant for the same larger-than-your-head pancakes of which we would without fail sarcastically remark at the incredible size.

But one summer I remember in particular, mainly because I tore out of the car where I had been smooshed into the backseat between my brother and sister when we made a very exciting and very non-habitual stop at my great uncle and aunt’s house. They live in a small town nearby the area my grandma was born, which is also conveniently on the way to our final destination. I was very young at the time, so I really only remember three things about the unconventional stop that day: my aunt and uncle’s adorable little schnauzer, light-hearted musings about Long Island Iced-Tea, and the sweet corn we ate.

Now, I thought for sure that I could easily sneak that little schnauzer puppy into my Mickey Mouse backpack as an early Christmas present to myself from my parents (of which they were unaware, of course). I wasn’t sure what Long Island Iced-Tea was, but they certainly made it sound like a really wonderful thing. And what I certainly didn’t know was how ahead of our time we were by eating sweet corn that had been picked just inches from our picnic table. Inches, really. Ok, maybe feet. You get the picture. The point is, this local eating craze that has become en vogue these days, has been going on long before I understood or appreciated it. Thank goodness we learn from those that come before us.

(I should maybe be peppering this post with a lightly-but-seriously-asserted defense against common misconceptions about the Midwest as a drab land of cows, cornfields, and cowboys, but I promise you, it is so much more. But I’m sure that my story of eating inches away from corn would just break those defenses anyway. Just take my word for it.)

This is why I especially appreciate this meal of homemade pasta and fresh corn pesto. The preparation is simple, really. It is a recipe adapted from the one found in this month’s Bon Appétit Magazine.

You begin by cutting the kernels from six large ears of corn. As a disclaimer I’d like to advise you to prepare yourself to find corn kernels strewn throughout your kitchen for days to come, they will go flying.

You then add the corn, garlic, salt, pepper, and red pepper flakes to a pan containing the drippings from the four strips of bacon you’ve previously cooked to a delicious, crispy brown. The corn becomes tender and just smells like summer. Makes me crave a Long Island Iced-Tea, actually.

You then combine the corn along with Parmesan cheese and pine nuts (our more classic pesto ingredients) in a food processor until smooth. The key to really making this into a sauce is saving some pasta water, adding as you find necessary to make it really coat the pasta.

You can never go wrong topping things with basil and/or bacon (though I would suggest substituting with pancetta, just to keep this pasta dish uber Italian).

I really enjoyed the creaminess of the pesto with the distinctive texture of the fresh pasta, but any dried fettuccine or tagliatelle would certainly be delicious as well. It was just a little bit nice to know that I was eating inches away from the table where I made the pasta.

Besides being great over the pasta, I think that this corn pesto would serve great as a topper to a crostini. Maybe with a decorative red bell pepper atop for some crunch and depth. It seems really quite versatile. And I’m sure that with all the farmers’ markets stalls, it will be easy to take advantage of the fresh corn while it lasts this summer. And then I can go back to the same fall, winter, and spring with the same snow, that brings the same gorgeous summer that I appreciate so much, because I miss it the same every year.

I guess sometimes things change (like camping trip detours) and sometimes they don’t. And for that I am very grateful.

Tagliatelle with Fresh Corn Pesto
Adapted slightly from Bon Appétit magazine, August 2010. Original recipe, here.

4 bacon slices, cut into 1/2-inch pieces
4 cups fresh corn kernels (from about 6 large ears)
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 teaspoon. red pepper flakes (or more to your taste)
1 1/4 teaspoons course kosher salt
3/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1/2 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese
1/3 cup pine nuts, toasted
1/3 cup extra-virgin olive oil
8 ounces tagliatelle or fettuccine
3/4 cup torn basil leaves

Cook bacon in large nonstick skillet over medium heat until crisp and brown, stirring often. Using slotted spoon, transfer to paper towels to drain. Pour off all but 1 tablespoon drippings from skillet. Add corn, garlic, 1 1/4 teaspoons coarse salt, 3/4 teaspoon pepper, and red pepper flakes to drippings in skillet. Sauté over medium-high heat until corn is just tender but not brown, about 4 minutes. Transfer 1 1/2 cups corn kernels to small bowl and reserve. Scrape remaining corn mixture into processor. Add 1/2 cup Parmesan and pine nuts. With machine running, add olive oil through feed tube and blend until pesto is almost smooth. Set pesto aside.
Cook pasta in large pot of boiling salted water until just tender but still firm to bite, stirring occasionally. Drain, reserving 1 1/2 cups pasta cooking liquid. Return pasta to pot. Add corn pesto, reserved corn kernels, and 1/2 cup basil leaves. Toss pasta mixture over medium heat until warmed through, adding reserved pasta cooking liquid by 1/4 cupfuls to thin to desired consistency, 2 to 3 minutes. Season pasta to taste with salt and pepper.
Transfer pasta to large shallow bowl. Sprinkle with remaining 1/4 cup basil leaves and reserved bacon. Serve pasta, passing additional grated Parmesan alongside.