I love Pasta. I love making it, I love eating it. But you cannot have a good pasta without a good sauce. I have decided to try making at least one new sauce every couple of weeks. First is a classic, The Basil Pesto.
Pesto comes from the Genoese word pestâ (from Genoa in Northern Italy) which basically means to crush or to pound. Originally this sauce was made using a mortar and pestle, however you can also make it using a food processor. (Once I get a mortar and pestle, I will give the traditional way a try too).
Ingredients:
2 cups fresh Basil Leaves
1/2 cup of Pine Nuts
1/2 cup Parmesan-Reggiano cheese (freshly grated)
1 cup extra virgin Olive Oil
3 cloves of garlic
1/2 teaspoon of thyme. (Optional)
Salt, black pepper to taste.
Lets COOK!!!.
Lets start with those lovely fresh basil leaves.
Now you can add your remaining Olive oil and get it to the consistency you want. As you can see, we have gotten a very creamy consistency. If you want it to have a leafier, rougher consistency, cut down on the olive oil (use only 1/2 a cup) and the blending time.
Fettucini is my favourite pasta and it goes beautifully with pesto. So for this cook-off I boiled some as per the instructions on the case.
Toss it together with that yummy creamy pesto, garnish with basil (I ran out of basil so used coriander) , maybe grate some parmesan over and above and serve.
Printable Recipe:-
Ingredients:
2 cups fresh Basil Leaves
1/2 cup of Pine Nuts
1/2 cup Parmesan-Reggiano cheese (freshly grated)
1 cup extra virgin Olive Oil
3 cloves of garlic
1/2 teaspoon of thyme. (Optional)
Salt, black pepper to taste.
Steps:
1) Wash and clean the basil leaves and add along with the garlic and pine nuts to a food processor.
2) Add a little olive oil (3-4 tablespoons) and start blending.
3) Once they are decently creamy, add the cheese, thyme, salt and pepper along with a bit more olive oil.
4) Keep blending and slowly adding the olive oil till you get it to the required consistency.
5) The more olive oil you add and the longer you blend it, the creamier will be the final consistency.
6) Toss with some pasta and enjoy!!!
Pesto comes from the Genoese word pestâ (from Genoa in Northern Italy) which basically means to crush or to pound. Originally this sauce was made using a mortar and pestle, however you can also make it using a food processor. (Once I get a mortar and pestle, I will give the traditional way a try too).
Ingredients:
2 cups fresh Basil Leaves
1/2 cup of Pine Nuts
1/2 cup Parmesan-Reggiano cheese (freshly grated)
1 cup extra virgin Olive Oil
3 cloves of garlic
1/2 teaspoon of thyme. (Optional)
Salt, black pepper to taste.
Lets COOK!!!.
Lets start with those lovely fresh basil leaves.
Wash and clean them, add them to a food processor along with your garlic and pine nuts. Add a little olive oil, just enough to get them minced.
Blend them for a bit and then add in your cheese. I also threw in a little bit of thyme just for taste. (this is optional).
Now you can add your remaining Olive oil and get it to the consistency you want. As you can see, we have gotten a very creamy consistency. If you want it to have a leafier, rougher consistency, cut down on the olive oil (use only 1/2 a cup) and the blending time.
Fettucini is my favourite pasta and it goes beautifully with pesto. So for this cook-off I boiled some as per the instructions on the case.
Toss it together with that yummy creamy pesto, garnish with basil (I ran out of basil so used coriander) , maybe grate some parmesan over and above and serve.
Printable Recipe:-
Ingredients:
2 cups fresh Basil Leaves
1/2 cup of Pine Nuts
1/2 cup Parmesan-Reggiano cheese (freshly grated)
1 cup extra virgin Olive Oil
3 cloves of garlic
1/2 teaspoon of thyme. (Optional)
Salt, black pepper to taste.
Steps:
1) Wash and clean the basil leaves and add along with the garlic and pine nuts to a food processor.
2) Add a little olive oil (3-4 tablespoons) and start blending.
3) Once they are decently creamy, add the cheese, thyme, salt and pepper along with a bit more olive oil.
4) Keep blending and slowly adding the olive oil till you get it to the required consistency.
5) The more olive oil you add and the longer you blend it, the creamier will be the final consistency.
6) Toss with some pasta and enjoy!!!
will be trying this!! nice ..
ReplyDeletea more fun way of making pesto is to use a mortar and pestle instead of a blender... originally was done like that i think.. tastes awesome!!!
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