My sweet little basil plant! |
Back to my obsession with pesto…I found myself frequently disappointed when I would buy pesto in the stores. Occasionally I would find something suitable at a farmer’s market, but the money and disappointment became too much for me in the end. Then one evening, while on-call for work and overseeing a tumultuous mid-week move, a resident gave me her recipe for homemade pesto. She even supplied me with pine nuts so I didn’t have to go to the store! Perfection!
Side note: I am aware that making pesto is not baking, but it has become a signature recipe in recent years. It is worthy of this blog because I love it so very much and needed to share it with all of you. Also, when I finally decide to make my own pizza dough, I will need something equally impressive to pair with it…enter my homemade pesto. So this is a precursor to a future baking endeavor.
When I first started making pesto, I had to use my blender…the one that was a 21st birthday gift from my sister Erin. But now I have Cuisinart food processor (24th birthday gift from Mom and Dad!) and I was excited for another reason to use it! I’ve combined the recipe from my resident and the Cuisinart cookbook. The result? A fabulous basil pesto that is the perfect complement to pizza, pasta, and more!
Megan’s Pesto
1-2 cloves fresh garlic
1 ounce fresh basil leaves
1/3 cup extra virgin olive oil
2/3 cup grated parmesan cheese
3 tablespoons pine nuts (or walnuts)
1/8 teaspoon coarse salt
With the food processor running, drop the garlic cloves down the feed tub and process to chop, about 5 seconds. Scrape down the sides of the work bowl.
Chopped garlic perfection! |
Add the basil to the work bowl and pulse to chop, 20 to 30 times. Scrape down the sides of the work bowl.
Basil ready to be chopped up! |
And by the magic that is Cuisinart, it's chopped! |
With the food processor running, add the olive oil in a slow drizzle. Scrape down the sides of the work bowl.
Slowly pouring in the olive oil! |
Halfway there!! |
Add the parmesan cheese and pine nuts. Pulse to incorporate and chop the nuts. Add the salt to taste.
Now it's cheesy and nutty! :) And ready for pasta! |
Makes 6 ounces of pesto.
3 ounces in each container--one to freeze, one for right now! |
Thanks for stopping by again!
<3 Buttercup
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