I admit, I used to buy pesto. Yes, this kind of pesto. It was basically flavored oil – greasy, dingy brown, and bland. I only had so much time and money while I was going to design school, so I would grab some dried pasta and a jar of pesto off the shelf and call it dinner. Little did I know it was so easy to make!
Fresh, garlicky, basil pesto is in a whole other category of it’s own, and it rocks my world. It does because it’s flexible, convenient, and it makes a meal…I’ve put it on pizza, pasta, baked potatoes, sandwiches, salads…you name it, I’ve probably had it.
And really, that jar of pesto off the shelf isn’t a whole lot of pesto, if you’re pesto-obsessed like I am. So make yourself a huge jar of pesto, pair it with something simple, and you have yourself a dinner. Or lunch. Or breakfast.
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From Simply Recipes’s Fresh Basil Pesto
by Elise of Simply Recipes
2 cups fresh basil leaves, packed
1/2 cup freshly grated Parmesan-Reggiano or Romano cheese
1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil
1/3 cup pine nuts or walnuts
3 medium sized garlic cloves, minced
Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
Combine the basil in with the pine nuts, pulse a few times in a food processor. (If you are using walnuts instead of pine nuts and they are not already chopped, pulse them a few times first, before adding the basil.) Add the garlic, pulse a few times more.
2 Slowly add the olive oil in a constant stream while the food processor is on. Stop to scrape down the sides of the food processor with a rubber spatula. Add the grated cheese and pulse again until blended. Add a pinch of salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste.
Makes 1 cup.
My mom gave me a basil plant when I moved in. It’s doing well, but sadly, most of its leaves are now gone because of my mad pesto-making nights.
The leaves rinsed and dried.
If you like garlic, you’ll love pesto, because there’s lots of it (well, I usually throw in an extra clove)
Fresh lemons from the backyard.
Fresh ground black pepper, kosher salt, and high quality extra virgin olive oil. You can go for regular black pepper and salt, but I think using a great olive oil makes all the difference. I’ve been using the DeCecco brand, which I’ve been very happy with.
Fresh Parmesan cheese, grated right into the food processor, because I’m lazy like that.
Pine nuts add a great flavor. I’ve also heard of people using walnuts – which I haven’t actually tried yet.
The pesto is a bright green thick paste just after blending. After a few hours, the oil will separate from the rest of the solids, and turn into a sauce.
Pesto on gnocchi.
Pesto on thin crust pizza with fresh buffalo mozzarella cheese and strips of sun dried tomato and prosciutto.
Pesto on pasta, with extra Parmesan cheese and black pepper.
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From Simply Recipes’s Fresh Basil Pesto
Don’t forget the sunflower seed pesto too! I could probably eat it with a spoon. Oh! There’s a sesame muffin in the fridge….
Oh man that looks so good!
I made the pesto last night! It was absolutely delicious. I opted to make it without nuts, since I’m not too keen on them. Still a great recipe! Thanks for the idea. Much better than store bought.
pine nuts are so expensive here that we sometimes use cashew nuts. must try that sunflower seed pesto sometime:)
@monina
Pine nuts are expensive, so I buy them in bulk and refrigerate them (they spoil easily). I never tried sunflower seed pesto before…that sounds interesting.
I made this pesto for my lunch and it was quite successful. I did feel it was slightly too garlicy, but other than that easily a fantastic recipee.