Is that Pesto in your Pasta...?

I think I mentioned once before that we have a crop of basil that would make any Italian proud. It is enormous, fragrant and beautiful. 

Growing up my mom always had home-made pesto in the freezer and she would add it to dishes all the time. It was so good and always tasted so fresh. I am fairly confident that you can always tell the difference between home-made pesto and anything from a jar. Just saying.

The good and easy thing about making your own pesto is that a lot of the recipe is up to you and your taste buds. So I say, start small and taste-add as you go. 

My fresh basil cut right off the enormous "tree"

The basic accouterments: olive oil, garlic & Parmesan cheese

The finished product

Dinner: linguine with pesto, fresh tomatoes (also from our garden), some spicy chicken sausage with a bit more Parmesan cheese sprinkled on top for good measure. So good. 

Cheers to the Cook!

Home-made Pesto 

Special Equipment: Mini Food Processor, Magic Bullet or any other type of small blending-chopping apparatus

1 cup basil leaves, rinsed & dried

2 cloves of garlic (or more to taste)

2 tbsp Parmesan cheese (you could also use asiago or reggiano... almost any hard Italian cheese)

1/4-1/2 tsp salt (or more to taste - I like to make the pesto itself a bit less salty - you can always add more once it is worked into a recipe)

1/4 cup olive oil (again, start here, add more as necessary. Some like a thinner consistency, so add to your liking)

Throw all ingredients in your processor, puree/blend/chop for about 30 seconds. Scrape down sides, add a bit more oil if consistency is not right. Blend for another 10-15 seconds. Enjoy with ANYTHING!

Yield: 2 servings