I’ve always enjoyed pesto, but haven’t had it on a regular basis. Last year, I picked up some local jalapeño pesto from the farmer’s market and I became slightly obsessed. It was good on crackers, toasted bread, tossed in pasta…the list went on and on.
This year I had three basil plants and more basil than I knew what to do with – especially now that the nights have gotten cooler. I know the basil is nearing the end of it’s life, so I figured some homemade pesto would be a great way to use up a lot of leaves at one time. The result was yummy – and much better than the mass-produced stuff at the grocery store. And it was cheap – I already had all the ingredients in my kitchen.
I started with lots of fresh basil from my garden. Beautiful, fragrant and delicious – perfect for making homemade pesto.
I had all the other ingredients already on-hand, making this extremely quick and easy to put together.
I then packed two cups of basil leaves.
I put the basil, olive oil, cheese, garlic, salt, pepper and walnuts in the food processor and blended until smooth.
I stored the pesto in an air-tight jar until serving the next day.
- 2 cups packed fresh basil leaves
- 1/4 cup fresh parmesan cheese
- 1/4 cup olive oil
- 1/4 chopped walnuts
- 1 clove of garlic
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1/4 teaspoon black pepper
- Combine all ingredients in a food processor and blend until smooth. Best if served immediately - will last up to 1 week in the refrigerator, or freeze.
