Basil pesto

With all the rain that we have been getting here in Ohio the last few weeks, the only things that seem to be loving it are the weeds and my garden! I was checking on my little herb farm over the weekend and found that my basil had really taken off.

I love a good basil pesto with pasta, tomato salad, bread, shrimp, you name it and I’ll try it. So I decided to whip up a batch and get my summer food preserving started. I just store this in the freezer and it’s never let me down.

I’ve adopted my version from a couple of different recipes I’ve read through over the years. I have tried it with half spinach, half basil and that’s really good and a milder flavor if that’s more to your liking. This post is all you need for basic pesto. I don’t see any reason that you can’t use a blender for this if you don’t have access to a food processor. Just go slower and make sure you scrape the sides down to incorporate all the good stuff!

1 – A total of 1/2 cups of pine nuts and/or walnuts. I had a little bit of both left so I used about 1/4 of each. Feel free to go with just one, but traditional pesto is usually made with pine nuts.

Once you get the basics of this recipe, you can get creative and use all kinds of different greens and nuts. That’s what’s fun about food…you can do whatever you want!

2 – 2-3 Tablespoons of coarsely chopped garlic. I use 3 because I love it, but for some people (like my mom that was helping me) that’s way to much for her so we used less in her batch. Just don’t leave it out entirely, you need it for a tasty pesto.

3 – About 5 Cups of basil – Rinsed well and removed from the large stems but not chopped up. Pack in into a 1 cup measure. I also make sure to dry it off either in a salad spinner or with a clean kitchen towel.

4 – 1 Teaspoon of Kosher salt and 1 Teaspoon of fresh cracked pepper

5 – 1 1/2 cups of Extra Virgin Olive oil (plus a few tablespoons for finishing the jars). I used my everyday olive oil for this since it’s going into the freezer. If I were using this right away I would probably use my higher quality olive oil that I keep for a finishing oil. As long as it’s an olive oil you like, go for it.

6 – 1 cup of fresh grated parmesan cheese – for this application the stuff in the jar with the green lid will not do. If you are going to take the time to make this, get a small hunk of the good stuff and grate it up. It will be worth it! Be sure to save the rind in the freezer for some pasta sauce or soup later.

You are ready to start! For the First round in the handy dandy food processor, add the nuts and garlic and process on High for about 30 seconds. Enough to pulse it up and get everything ground together.

It should look a little something like this.

Next up add the basil, salt and pepper. Process on high for about another 20-30 seconds until the basil is combined with the rest of the ingredents.

Time for the olive oil! With the processer on low, slowly drizzle the olive oil through the feed tube. Admire the green goodness in that bowl!

Last but not least add the parmesan cheese…just sprinkle it over the top and pulse a couple of times to incorporate the cheese.

Now all that’s left is to do is store this herby goodness! I put mine in 4 oz mason jars with regular rings and lids. This recipe makes (6) 4 oz jars. After you fill them, drizzle enough olive oil over the pesto to cover the top to keep the pretty green color. I usually use mine up pretty fast, but you can store in the freezer up to 18 months. Make sure you date the lids. I like to use this on shrimp, salad dressings or in pasta dishes all year long. Look for future recipes on how to use this jar of summertime! Enjoy!