Pesto - Basic, Vegan Low Calorie, Walnut and Red Pepper - Recipes

Pesto is a sauce that originated in Northern Italy. It is made with Basil, Crushed Garlic, and  European Pine Nuts. This is mixed with olive oil, Parmesan Cheese and Fiore Sardo (cheese from sheep milk).  The European Pine Nuts and Italian Cheeses are hard to find and when you do, they can be expensive. In America we use Chinese or Korean Pine Nuts and omit the Fiore Sardo or replace it with Romano Cheese, making it less expensive to make and manufacture.

Pesto has become so popular in America that we have created many different recipes for it. Below are a few of my own variations.

 images collected from http://www.wikipedia.org/

Basic Pesto

• 2 cups packed Fresh Basil Leaves
• 2 or 3 Garlic Cloves
• 1/4 cup Pine Nuts
• 2/3 cup Extra Virgin Olive Oil
• 1/2 cup grated Pecorino Romano Cheese (you can use Parmesan or Regular Romano, sometimes I do 1/4 cup each)
• Fresh ground pepper and salt to taste

Add Basil, Garlic and Pine Nuts to food processor and pulse until coarsely chopped. Add Cheese and while food processor is running drizzle in Olive Oil, stopping to scrape sides as needed. Add directly to your pasta or roasted potato's or place in a bowl to use as a spread.
For a more authentic texture use a large Mortar and Pestle and grind on the edges in a circular motion.

Vegan - Low Calorie
Simply leave out the Cheese. This recipe is still delicious

Walnut
Replace the pine nuts with walnuts for an extra nutty taste. I have seen almonds used too but I have never tried it.

Red Pepper
Only use 1/2 cup of the Basil
add 3 medium Roasted Red Bell Peppers.
add 1 teaspoon of Red Wine or Balsamic Vinegar
Drizzle in olive oil as you blend ingredients until you get the right consistency. I find that I need a little less when using Bell peppers.

How to freeze
Omit the cheese and only mix in 1/2 cup of the olive oil.
Put in desired container and pour remaining Olive Oil over the top to prevent freezer burn.
Mix in the cheese when mixture is thawed for use.

Scarlett

• Hamilton Beach 70670 Chef Prep 525-Watt Food Processor, Black
• Wilton 570-1121 Easy Flex 3-Piece Silicone Spatula Set, Blue
• The New Food Processor Bible: 30th Anniversary Edition (Bible (Whitecap))
• Pestos, Tapenades, and Spreads: 40 Simple Recipes for Delicious Toppings, Sauces & Dips 
• 8 Inch Stone Granite Mortar and Pestle 4 Cup Capacity