Basic Basil Pesto

Name: Basic Basil Pesto
Prep time: 30 min
Total time: 30 min
Yield: 8 people
Ingredients: 6 garlic cloves; 1 c pine nuts; 1 tsp salt; 9 c (9 oz) fresh basil leaves; 2 oz Parmesan cheese; 1/2 c extra virgin olive oil

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Prep Time
30 mins
Total Time
30 mins
Servings
8 people
Calories
203 kcal
Course
Condiments
Cuisine
Italian

Basic Basil Pesto

John House

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You don't have to wait until summer's harvest to enjoy fresh basil pesto! This basic pesto recipe is perfect for freezing so you can enjoy it all year long. Yield: Roughly 2 c

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Ingredients

Servings

6 garlic cloves, peeled
1 c pine nuts or walnuts
1 tsp salt
9 c (9 oz) fresh basil leaves, washed and dried
2 oz Parmesan cheese, fresh grated (roughly 1 cup)*
1/2 c extra virgin olive oil

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Instructions

Place the garlic cloves and nuts in the bowl of a food processor. Process until a smooth paste forms. (Add a little of the olive oil if necessary to get the paste to form.)
Add the salt and basil leaves, a few at a time, being careful not to over-pack the processor. Pulse the processor to chop the leaves down, and continue until all the leaves have been added and chopped fine.
Add your grated Parmesan cheese and process until incorporated.
Add the olive oil, slowly, as needed for the mixture to form a smooth pesto with the consistency you desire.
Once the pesto has been made, it can be frozen the tablespoonful in ice cube trays. After 3-4 hours, the cubes can be removed from the trays and placed in a freezer bag for later use.

Notes

*We don’t add the Parmesan cheese if we are going to freeze the pesto. We will simply add the cheese to whatever dish we are making with our frozen pesto.
This recipe from 2014 was updated in May 2017. We made the pesto even better! Enjoy!