Fresh Basil Pesto

I have a bumper crop of basil growing in the garden this year.  I can never have enough of it, so I planted plenty.  It is growing in my herb garden, as well as tucked in between flowers in my flower beds. I love the fragrance of basil when you walk by it, that's why I plant it in the beds.  The basil plants were huge, but did not flower yet, I picked quite a bit and made pesto with it.  I made a vegan version and a regular version, as well as using some for bruschetta, my new lunchtime treat for the summer.  You will need a food processor or a blender to make this pesto.  Recipe below.

To print recipe, click on it, highlight and print.

The fresh basil, as you can see there is alot of it, fresh garlic too.  

 I also used pine nuts (pignoli nuts), olive oil, threw in some walnuts and my fresh grated cheese.

 The vegan pesto on the left is a little thinner, because there is no cheese, than the regular pesto on the right.

 I was a busy woman last night making all three batches of these delicious tasting foods with fresh basil.  I'll use my pesto on pasta, spread it on garlic bread and toast it (it's awesome that way!), on sandwiches and stirred into sauces.  It's not hard to make and the flavor of fresh, pays off for the little bit of time spent to make it homemade.  Try it, you'll love it!

Fresh Basil Pesto

Ingredients

1 - 1 inch by 3 inch piece of Parmegiano - Reggiano cheese, cut from the wedge

2 tablespoons chopped walnuts

1/4 cup pine nuts (pignoli nuts)

5 cloves of garlic, chopped

6 1/2 cups fresh basil

1 teaspoon salt, I used kosher salt

1/2 teaspoon black pepper

1  to 1 1/2 cups of extra virgin olive oil

Directions

In a food processor fitted with the shredding plate, shred the cheese. Pour into a bowl and set aside.  Place the bowl of the processor back on your machine, pour in the walnuts, pine nuts and garlic, put the lid on and process for about 10 seconds.  Add the basil, salt and pepper and process for about another 10 - 15 seconds. While the processor is running on low speed, slowly add in the olive oil, until you reach the consistency you are looking for.  It should not be too oily, but not too thick like a paste with not enough oil. Stop the machine and add the cheese, if you are using it.  Put the lid back on and run the processor until the pesto is well blended, it should be somewhat grainy looking (see photo) and not  look like baby food.

Makes about 2 cups. 

NOTE:  You can freeze the pesto in indivdual serving size resealable bags.  Squeeze all the air out of the bag before freezing.