Sunday, July 10, 2011

Easiest Pesto EVER

If, like us, you're struggling to figure out what to do with your rampant basil plants this time of year, here's the easiest pesto recipe ever. This is a no-miss favorite.

It's the rule of threes, in alphabetical order:

3 cups of basil, tightly-packed
3 (at least) cloves of garlic (I like 4 large or 5 small, but that's up to you)

1/3 cup pine nuts, roasted over heat (do NOT overcook - they get bitter)
1/3 cup olive oil
1/3 cup parmesan, shredded

Get out your blender. Add the first two ingredients first, and pulse till it's a sauced. Then add the last 3 ingredients in order, with a healthy helping of cracked black pepper added with the parmesan.

Don't salt it till you've tried it with the parmesan, which has a lot of salt on its own.

Empty out the blender over your cooked pasta (TJoe's farfalle is perfect) and mix well. For a full dinner, add some protein (we like TJoe's chardonnay sausage), some green salad, and a rustic bread.

Best with a full-bodied white, like a chard.

(Note: my Facebook friends recommend replacing the pine nuts with walnuts, pistachios, or almonds, which are all cheaper and easier to find than pine nuts.)

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