Local trattorias, like one of my all-time favorites, Don Ciccio in Bagheria, usually offer seasonal specials that we covet because they only appear on menus annually, when the produce is fresh from the garden. For example, this bucatini pasta appears to be dressed with a familiar basil pesto; however, basil is not the base here, but fresh parsley! When it’s grown just a kilometer away from the restaurant, it’s a whole different story.

Important to note: “pesto” to Italians is not limited to Genovese-style basil pesto. Pesto is a style of preparing many ingredients for dressing pasta that may not include basil at all.