Pasta al Pesto Genovese

Liguria's vivid green sauce -- basil leaves pounded in a marble mortar with Ligurian extra-virgin olive oil, pine nuts, Parmigiano-Reggiano, Pecorino Sardo, and garlic -- has been protected by a Pesto Genovese Consortium since 1992 that specifies seven ingredients, including basil grown in the Praa Levante microclimate, where the sea breeze gives Genovese basil a distinctive sweetness absent from basil grown elsewhere. It is always served with trofie or trenette pasta, never penne or spaghetti.