With summer temperatures on the cool down, I was running short on days to harvest my patio basil for pesto. Web searches for the perfect recipe netted some uninteresting variations of the standard… basil, olive oil, Parmesan cheese, garlic and pine nuts. Previous experiments with the standard were just not to my liking, a mysterious ingredient always seemed to be absent.
Rescue arrived in the form of a recipe from fellow Travelzine moderator, Gail Norris (Eugene, OR). A longtime gardener and pesto maker, Gail has perfected her recipe over a number of years…and perfect it is. Yesterday I harvested, sorted and whirred basil leaves, carefully combining them with recipe ingredients in the order and quantity that Gail advised. Perfecto!! I couldn’t believe my taste buds. My little patio pot of basil netted enough pesto for a winter of feasting on on pesto pasta, pesto sandwich spread and pesto pizza for me AND my family. I am one happy girl!
Oh and the picture above…John and my dinner tonight. Basil pesto made with walnuts, incredible 🙂
