How to make perfect pesto

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Pesto recipe: How to make perfect pesto
Pesto recipe: How to make perfect pesto

Pesto is amazingly easy to make and is an excellent way to make pasta exciting. Follow this pesto recipe and you can be eating your own pesto within minutes. Try a fresh roll with a little butter and some fresh pesto, delicious! It also freezes well. Put the pesto you make into an ice-cube tray and you have convenient-sized lumps of pesto that will last all year. Click on the images below to enlarge them.
		Fresh basil. Strip off the leaves and wash them. Spin dry them in your salad drier. If you don't have a salad drier, go and buy one. They're great.
		Fresh garlic. Use a whole head. Take off the skin and crush the cloves with a garlic press. If you don't have a garlic press you can use the back of a fork but it is probably best to go and buy a garlic press if you don't have one. They're great too.
		Parmesan cheese. Either grate it yourself or buy it ready grated. This will make your pesto creamier and give it a bit of bite.
		Black pepper, freshly ground, and plenty of it. Salt, definitely required, add to taste. Pine nuts, or walnuts if you can't find pine nuts. Throw in a handful. Olive oil - choose the best quality you can afford.
Put all the ingredients in a food blender and blend away until the pesto is a paste. If it is too thick, add some more olive oil. If it's too thin, you shouldn't have put in so much olive oil... If you don't have a food blender, use an electric hand whisk and a tall container. If you don't have an electric hand whisk, go and buy one. They are not expensive and very useful.
		The finished product. What do you mean, it looks like silage? It is yummy. A teaspoonful of pesto and a tablespoon of fromage frais mixed into your pasta dish will turn it into a food fit for the Gods. Pesto oxidises rapidly so it is best to put it in a container and cover it with a layer of olive oil. Alternatively, freezing the pesto will halt the oxidation process. Put it in an ice cube tray and you'll have handy cubes of pesto for whenever you need it.
Practical Information For more information about basil, click here. For more pesto varieties, click here. Want to try more of my recipes? elderflower syrup tomato sauce chutney chestnut soup rosehip syrup lentil burgers yoghurt Love food? So you might be interested in... French Food Czech Food Peruvian Food Lithuanian Food Spanish Food Cyprus Food