In one of my earlier posts, Live in Full Bloom, I talked about living in full bloom, finding your passion and pursuing it!
One of my passions is cooking and I thought I would this summer recipe with you. I grow lots of basil each year. I usually plant the basil in the ground but this spring the grasshoppers and snails were so bad that they almost ate it all so I planted some in pots too.
The great thing about pesto is you don’t need to be exact.
Basil Pesto Ingredients
Fresh basil (pull off the stems and rinse in a colander)-in this recipe I used probably 5-6 cups.
Garlic (We love garlic and I used 10-12 cloves-that may be too much for some people!)
Pine Nuts (used in total about a cup)
Parmesan (I just used the grated in the jar-Kraft- and then use the shredded type on top once I was serving in the bowls), probably used a cup.
Salt to taste
Olive Oil (used about 1/2 to 3/4 cup)
Peel the garlic and put in the food processor with about a 1/2 cup pine nuts. Blend. Then start adding everything else a little at a time- the basil leaves, the parmesan (probably half at a time), dash of salt, olive oil (I don’t add the olive oil all at once, I just add until it looks right), the rest of the pine nuts. When it is the taste and consistency you like, you are done!
Different ways to serve your pesto
Our favorite way to serve it is over angel hair pasta and I put shredded parmesan and more pine nuts on top. Some people add cherry tomatoes. You can even add cooked shrimp (My husband sometimes adds canned octupus!)
Another thing you can do is just put the pesto on top of creme cheese and you have an appetizer to serve with crackers.
My friend Brice said he bakes a croissant (the kind of croissants you buy in the freezer section like Pillsbury) and 5 minutes before it is done he slices it in half and adds mozzarella chunks. Then when it is done he adds pesto in the middle.
My friend Linda Waters reminded me that you can freeze the pesto in ice cubes (or even a zip lock bag if you have a bunch).
Pesto is so fresh and easy, one of our weekly favorites in the summer!
Great! Thanks for the info. I have a basil plant and it’s just sitting there looking pretty. Now I can put it to good use! I’m so excited to make some tonight for dinner!
Pam, it is super easy, we love it! Thanks for commenting!
We just had some last night on whole wheat rotini pasta. Delish!