Dario Cecchini’s Orange Olive Oil Cake

Bring a large pot of heavily salted water to a boil. Meanwhile, prepare the pesto.

To make pesto:  Place basil in cold water and set aside to soak briefly, at least 5 minutes.

Add whole almonds to blender and pulse until finely ground. Add oil, garlic and salt (the Vitamix is awesome for this) and process until mixture is very smooth and creamy (it should look like a loose peanut or almond butter).

Drain soaked basil, shake off water but don’t pat dry (you want some of that water). Tear and place in food processor and process until just evenly combined and mixture is light green, about 5 pulses.

Add cheese and just pulse until just combined, about 5 pulses more.

If mixture is too thick, add a few spoonfuls of cold water and pulse again. Remove from carafe and taste. Add more salt, as desired, then go ahead and use the pesto.

Pesto can be made up to 1 day ahead; store covered in the refrigerator until ready to use.

To Make Pasta:

One by one add the pasta squares to the boiling water and cook until just al dente, about 3 minutes (may be more or less depending on the thickness of the pasta).

Meanwhile reserve about 1 cup of the pasta cooking water. Place 1 cup of the pesto in a large frying pan (do not place it on any heat). When the pasta squares are cooked remove them from the water using a perforated spoon then gently add them to the sauce (it's okay if the pasta sheets have water on them -- it'll help make the sauce coast the pasta well!). Stir gently to coat -- each sheet should be coated in the sauce and there should be enough sauce in the pan to just coat the bottom. If the mixture is dry, add a few spoonfuls of the reserved pasta cooking water.

Once the pasta is ready, top with additional cheese and serve immediately.