Basil Pesto Recipe

Alexander and I are going to forge a new movement windowsill to table, the new urban farm to table.

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One snowy day last winter, after many snowy days, struggling to find something for us to do, I found a basil seed kit I had bought at Home Depot 3 years earlier and had stuck in a closet. We opened it, poured in the water, watched the peat moss disc quadruple in size and then planted the tiny seeds that are smaller than poppyseeds.

I said a quick prayer not knowing if it was going to work since it was so old. Days later we had our first shoots coming up. Almost a year later we have a giant basil plant living on our windowsill keeping us supplied with fresh basil all the time.

Avec Amour, Victoria and Alexander

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Basil Pesto Recipe

Yeild – 2 Cups

2 Cups Basil Leaves, firmly packed 

1/2 Cup Pine Nuts

1/2 Cup Parmesan Cheese, freshly grated

Garlic Clove

1/2 Cup Extra Virgin Olive Oil

1. Blanch the basil leaves by putting them in boiling water

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for 5 seconds

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and then immediately putting them into ice cold water

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drain. (This is a little trick I learned from my friend from Italy who worked in the restaurant. This helps to keep the basil bright and green.)

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2. Pre-heat oven to 300 degrees. Spread pine nuts on a baking half sheet pan* lined with parchment*or a silpat* and toast in oven for 6 minutes until light golden brown. Cool.

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3. Crush garlic

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in a garlic press* or back of a knife

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and put it in a food processor or blender

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along with the basil, pine nuts and Parmesan cheese. (I used a Cuisinart Mini Prep.)

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4. Pulse 4 times and then drizzle in all the olive oil while the processor is running until pesto forms.

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Serve over a half pound of angel hair pasta.

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The pesto can be saved for a later date by putting it into a container, covering it with additional olive oil and freezing.

* Half sheet pan or sometimes called a jelly role pan can be found at Amazon.

Amazon Half Sheet Baking Pan

*Parchment paper can usually be found in most grocery stores near the tin foil, but lucky for me I found it at Dollar Tree for $1.00! Mom tip of the day.

Dollar Tree Parchment Paper

*Silpats are available in most gourmet cooking stores, and on Amazon. I went to my local Michaels looking for one and surprisingly they did not carry them though.

Amazon Silpat

*I got my garlic press at Sur la Table.

Sur la Table Garlic Press

Basil Pesto Recipe from alexandersmom.com

Ingredients

  • 2 Cups Basil Leaves, firmly packed
  • 1/2 Cup Pine Nuts
  • 1/2 Cup Parmesan Cheese, freshly grated
  • 1 Garlic Clove
  • 1/2 Cup Extra Virgin Olive Oil

Instructions

  1. Blanch the basil leaves by putting them in boiling water for 5 seconds and then immediately putting them into ice cold water and drain.
  2. Pre-heat oven to 300 degrees. Spread pine nuts on a baking half sheet pan lined with parchment or a silpat and toast in the oven for 6 minutes until light golden brown. Cool.
  3. Crush garlic in a garlic press or with the back of a knife and put it in a food processor or blender along with the basil, pine nuts and Parmesan cheese.
  4. Pulse 4 times and then drizzle in all the olive oil while the processor is running until pesto forms. Serve over a half pound of angel hair pasta.

Notes

The pesto can be saved for a later date by putting it into a container, covering it with additional olive oil and freezing.

© 2016 Alexandersmom.com. All Rights Reserved.

https://www.alexandersmom.com/2016/02/23/basil-pesto-recipe/

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