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One, Two, Three Pesto!

The herb garden that the boys and I planted is overrun with basil. It is growing like a delicious, tasty weed. In fact, apart from squash, it is more or less the only thing that is growing abundantly right now. I joke that I have a black rather than a green thumb, and that plants grow in spite of (rather than because of) what I do. This summer, that’s not far from the truth. Except for the basil.

So, what do you do when overrun with basil? My good friend Katee, who is an amazing cook, suggested making pesto. Easy to make, the kids will love it, and it freezes well, why not give it a try? A great idea, so I looked up a few recipes, took what I liked (and what I had on hand!) from each recipe, and came up with the pesto below. I won’t claim that it is a classic presto recipe, but it was summery and yummy. And, it used up a pile of the basil before it overtook the garden!

Easy, Summery Pesto

Ingredients:

  • 4 cups washed basil leaves
  • 3 cloves chopped garlic
  • 1 tbsp. fresh-squeezed lemon juice
  • 1/3 cup extra-virgin olive oil  
  • 3/4 cup finely grated parmesan
  • Sea salt to taste
  • Optional: pine nuts, almonds or walnuts (I used a small handful of walnuts, but you could use any nut you have or omit them altogether)

Directions:

In a food processor, pulse the basil, nuts (if using) and garlic until coarsely chopped. Add the lemon juice and olive oil, adding the oil slowly and pulsing between additions until you are happy with the consistency. Add the parmesan cheese, and salt to taste. Pulse in the food processor until combined into a smooth paste.

Easy right? And kid-tested and approved! We ate it over grilled chicken last night, and the boys gobbled it up. In fact, Ben liked the pesto much, much better than the garden squash served with it. Getting him to eat the squash was torturous, for both of us! And he let me know how much he disliked it again this morning:

Ben: Mommy. I didn’t like the squash from our garden.

Me: I know, but you tried it. Sometimes you have to eat food that you don’t love because it’s good for you.

Ben (after thinking for a minute): What about if I don’t like cake? Do I have to eat that?

Nice try kiddo. He’d better watch that I don’t sneak squash into the next cake I bake!

xo Naomi 

Comments

  1. Jenn BWAugust 23, 2012 at 3:34 PM

    Mmmm....I love pesto! So funny - basil is the one thing I just can't seem to grow well out here! Maybe it's the lack of humidity? Feel free to send some my way (I'll take some pesto too)! I just love basil...on everything. :)

    Pesto is super yummy on make-your-own pizzas as well! Rather than pizza sauce (which is loaded with sugar) we use pesto, and then add toppings like broccoli, peppers, mushrooms, chicken (cooked - leftovers work great), mozzarella and feta cheese. So yummy! :)

    Basil is super yummy in Thai dishes as well. And I have a great recipe for grilled eggplant sandwiches that requires nice big basil leaves that I'll have to send your way! You'll never think about eggplant the same way again.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. NaomiAugust 23, 2012 at 4:35 PM

      Yum!! I've used pesto on pizza. So good!! Definitely send me the recipe for the eggplant. Wish I could send you some basil. No sending "leaves" over the border!

      Delete

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