Monday, June 25, 2012

Pesto!


This weekend we decided to make pizza - which I will share in my next post.  I love pesto on my pizza and you can't buy good pesto...it simply must be made from scratch.  I am not sure why I can't find a good pesto even in a nice deli situation but it never tastes as good as homemade.  :)

As with a lot of my "recipes", I have a starting point but I may not follow it as I actually make the food. I apologize in advance for any vagueness.  :)   So here is the recipe I had from my mom, which I am sure came from somewhere or someone else.  :) Then I will share what I actually did. 

Basil Pesto
2 cloves garlic
¼ c Parmesan
2 c fresh basil leaves
¼ c pine nuts
½ c fresh parsley

Cilantro Pesto                                                          
2 cloves garlic                                                           
4 oz Parmesan                                                         
2 c fresh cilantro leaves, hard packed                        
1/3 c toasted pine nuts                                           
5 to 6 T oil                                                                 
¼ t salt                                                                        

Blend in blender or food processor.  You can serve it, cook with it or freeze in small batches.  

Below are the ingredients I chose to use, a slight deviation from the recipe:  basil, olive oil, Parmesan, garlic, nuts & salt and pepper.  I used some pecans and some sunflower seeds instead of pine nuts and I also only used basil instead of both basil and parsley.  


I used a small food processor to make mine, as I find it works a little better than a blender.  

I did not measure anything but rather just used all the basil in the package and tossed in some nuts, Parmesan and garlic.  I did have to add enough oil to make sure that the rest of it will blend together in a paste.
  

I put part of the basil and ingredients in each time and processed until all ingredients were chopped up in the food processor. Finally I added salt and pepper to taste.  


We store it in an airtight glass container.  I have served this on bread or pita, used it as a pizza topping or as a pasta sauce or pasta salad ingredient.  I plan on trying a recipe for pesto marinated grilled chicken this week (and I will share!).  :)  Hope you can follow my crazy, non-recipe-following instructions.  Enjoy!

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