Pesto

I love pesto, its great to always have it ready in the fridge or even frozen. you can have it as dip, pasta sauce, a spread with grilled veggies, feta cheese or with roasted potatoes.

It is very simple


Ingredients

1 bunch fresh basil
3 cloves garlic (depending on taste)
¼ cup roasted pine nuts
1 small block Parmesan cheese
¼ cup olive oil
Salt
Pepper




Method:

Place the pine nuts in the pan and toast them on the stove using a medium-low fire,
cut the garlic in quarters, chop the basil roughly, to make it easier to pound. Place the garlic, pine nuts(leaving 1 tbsp. aside) and a small pinch of salt in the mortar (hawan) and smash using a down and outward motion. Add some of the basil and a small amount of olive oil. Smash and pound until the basil has a chopped appearance. The oil is important because it helps to smooth the texture, continue to add more basil and oil, pounding and using all of the basil.

Finally, add the tablespoon of nuts and pound lightly, leaving the pieces slightly rough for texture, Grate the cheese until you have ¾ cup and add it into the pesto,add pepper and salt to taste.

Measurements may differ every time, add more or less olive oil according to texture of the basil leaves especially when you add the grated Parmesan cheese.


Storage:

Store the pesto in a small bowl in the refrigerator, topped with a thin layer of oil and plastic wrap to prevent drying out and it can remain fresh for around a week, you can also freeze it in the freezer for 2 months, although some of the flavors may not be as strong.


A lot of recipes mention to put all the ingredients in a grinder, or blender but i just don't like the texture if its done in that way, others chop and keep on chopping till they get the right texture, i found that pounding the ingredients gives the best result for a true thick pesto texture.

Try it out yourself and tell me how it goes :)