This spring in my frenzy of planting 48 pots of flowers. (It's less than last year!) I also planted one pot of basil seeds. I've been waiting so patiently for the first harvest of basil. Last week I made a delicious Orzo pasta dish with chickpeas, basil and parmigiano reggiano cheese. The wait was worth it!
On Tuesday I made my favorite basil dish, fresh homemade pesto! Yum! If you have tried store bought pesto and didn't like it, don't hesitate to try homemade pesto. It is so much better than anything you can buy in the store. I love it on french bread toasts or whole wheat crackers. It even makes frozen cheese pizza taste better.
Just in case you have some fresh basil you don't know what to do with, or you can steal some from your neighbor... I'm not condoning stealing... I'm just sayin'!
Here is my favorite recipe.
2 packed cups fresh basil leaves
1/2 cup pine nuts
2 tsp. chopped garlic (fresh is best!)
salt and pepper to taste (I use sea salt and fresh ground pepper)
1/2 to 2/3 cup extra virgin olive oil
1/2 cup freshly grated parmigiano reggiano cheese.
Put basil, pine nuts and garlic in a food processor and pulse until coarsely chopped. Add salt and pepper to taste. Pour in olive oil while pulsing until the mixture comes together and is fairly smooth. Pulse in cheese. Refrigerate or enjoy a little immediately!
I can never wait, so I must try a little right away, but it does taste better after the flavors meld for a few hours in the refrigerator. The garlic is wonderful... but if anyone is sensitive to your breath, perhaps you are married to Dracula, you could always cut back, but it wouldn't be nearly as good!
Enjoy and feel free to share yours with me!
Sign in an elevator of at Kohls
12 years ago
3 comments:
I love pesto and had two bunches from our farmer. (We have a veggie subscription this summer - each week, we get a ton of fresh vegetables and herbs! Kind of like our own personal farmer's market!) I tried your recipe this morning - thank you! One batch is in the fridge; one in the freezer for later. Can't wait to see you! :) j.
p.s. I meant to say "two bunches of basil" ... it kind of sounded like I meant that we had two bunches of pesto. :)
mmmm!! Next time I'm visiting I want some.
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