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!
