Fallen Souffle

The backyard garden has become the backyard jungle (pics to come!) so it was time to make some pesto from the basil that has exploded. I have been putting off this task because I absolutely hate cleaning my food processor, it takes more time to clean the thing then make the actual pesto. However, I found a handy little trick on another blog that fit the bill perfectly!

You essentially use a blender, but you unscrew the bottom blade and use a mason jar in place of the pitcher the blender comes with. Ingenious! My Mom coulda used this trick when my sister’s dog ate the blender top (yes, you read that right). So you only have to clean the blender blade as you simply screw a mason lid on the jar to store it. My life has been changed. I hate doing the dishes so anything that will cut out or delay that step is good for me!

*Pay no attention to those pizza boxes*

Ok, on to the recipe, I used a traditional pesto recipe. I used to make all of the pesto at the bakery I worked at years ago so I have it memorized, but I tend to use less olive oil to make it a bit thicker. I usually toss pesto in with pasta and use chicken broth to thin it out, makes things a little lighter. I do think this pesto is destined for a grilled pizza on Friday. My sister is coming to town and I think this would be perfect!

Perfect Pesto
2 cup basil leaves
1 1/2 cups extra virgin olive oil
3 garlic cloves
juice from half a lemon
1 cup toasted pine nuts (could also use walnuts)
1 cup parmesan cheese
salt and pepper

Throw all of the ingredients into a food processor or the blender and pulse until combined. You could do it in stages, but I have found when I throw it in all at once I get the same results.

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This entry was posted on Tuesday, June 24th, 2008 at 3:53 pm and is filed under Italian. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.