Last of the Basil Pesto
by Chef Robin White
Gather the ingredients, put it all in the food processor for a minute and you are done!
Yesterday I was looking at the ton of basil I have in my garden. I decided it’s time to get it into the food processor to put up for the winter before I lost it to brown and boring. Just touching the leaves released the fresh smell of basil into the air. It was the perfect time to get this project completed.
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Having just relocated from Sonoma to Chicagoland, my home for the next 2 years, I feel comforted in the fact that I can think of California summers this snowy winter when I use my fresh frozen pesto in my favorite recipes.
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The beauty of Pesto is that it can be easily frozen or will last over a week in the fridge. I freeze pesto in ice cube trays. Each cube holds about a tablespoon and it just enough to add to sauces and chicken soup for that extra zing of garden freshness.
Ingredients:
-2 cups fresh basil, packed into the cup
-1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil, the very best one you can find, the oil matters
-1 tablespoon pine nuts, because pine nuts are so expensive this next step helps a lot
-3 tablespoons Parmigiano-Reggiano, or the best you can find
-4 walnut halves, this helps with the nut taste and fools your palate
-2 teaspoons minced fresh garlic
- and my secret weapon to keep it very green and light… 1 tablespoon exactly, club soda
-a great sea salt, such as grey salt
-freshly ground black pepper – salt to taste
Process
Puree all the ingredients in a blender or food processor until smooth and in about 1 minute and your done.
How easy was that?
give this a whirl, literally in the food processor. so easy so delicious. Thanks for having a look at The Daily Basics today. Your source for everything home.
Thank you: I have a ton of basil and I love pesto!
You can’t go wrong with Chef Robin’s recipes- It is always the small nuances that make a difference!