What is it and why should you make it?
Pesto is a delicious green sauce that can be used on pasta, pizza, tofu, fish, just about anything. There are many varieties of Pesto, my favorite and the one shown here is the traditional basil and pine nut version. And it is green so you can pretend it is healthy 🙂
Pesto
Add basil and pine nuts to food processor and pulse about 6 times. Depending on the size of your food processor you may need to split into 2-3 batches.
Add garlic, cheese, salt and pepper (and optional red pepper flakes).
With food processor running, slowly pour in olive oil.
Blend until thoroughly combined. Stopping a couple times to scrape down the sides. If it looks dry, add a little more olive oil.
If processing in batches, combine all pesto and stir to blend together.
Full recipe makes approximately 3 pints, 12 servings. It freezes well. We are just two people, so i like to freeze in 1/2 pint jars. Fill container, leaving 1/2 inch space at the top. Pour olive oil over the top to keep it from turning brown. Tighten the lid and freeze.
To use: Take pesto out of freezer the night before and refrigerate. If you forget (or didn’t know you needed it), thaw in the microwave, 30 sec at a time.
1/2 pint will cover 2 servings of pasta.
Ingredients
Directions
Add basil and pine nuts to food processor and pulse about 6 times. Depending on the size of your food processor you may need to split into 2-3 batches.
Add garlic, cheese, salt and pepper (and optional red pepper flakes).
With food processor running, slowly pour in olive oil.
Blend until thoroughly combined. Stopping a couple times to scrape down the sides. If it looks dry, add a little more olive oil.
If processing in batches, combine all pesto and stir to blend together.
Full recipe makes approximately 3 pints, 12 servings. It freezes well. We are just two people, so i like to freeze in 1/2 pint jars. Fill container, leaving 1/2 inch space at the top. Pour olive oil over the top to keep it from turning brown. Tighten the lid and freeze.
To use: Take pesto out of freezer the night before and refrigerate. If you forget (or didn’t know you needed it), thaw in the microwave, 30 sec at a time.
1/2 pint will cover 2 servings of pasta.
Notes
Please share how you like to use pesto.