Preserved Pesto

Summer is coming to an end soon, and I will miss the abundance of it's seasonal vegetables- sweet basil, homegrown tomatoes, crisp corn, squashes, cucumbers ....on and on. If you find any of these items on sale at the store or taking over your garden, preserve them! This doesn't necessarily mean you have to pickle and can the summer veggies. I like to make batches of basil pesto to store in our freezer. There is nothing better than a meal reminiscent of summer in the middle of January.

Stay tuned for more preservation recipes such as tomato sauce, jam and pickles.

PRESERVED PESTO

makes 4 cups

You will need:

1/4 cup walnuts

1/4 cup pine nuts

9 cloves garlic, blanched

5 cups fresh basil leaves, packed

1 teaspoon kosher salt

1 teaspoon fresh black pepper

1 1/2 cups extra-virgin olive oil

1 cup parmigiano-reggiano cheese, freshly grated*

To blanch the garlic:

Cover garlic in a saucepan with water by 1 inch. Bring to a boil over high heat then immediately drain. Let garlic cool to room temperature. I think this is the key to good pesto!

*Try grating the cheese in the processor before you start the pesto. Take it out while you make the recipe.

Process walnuts, pine nuts, and garlic in a food processor for 30 seconds.

Add basil leaves, salt and pepper.

Slowly pour the olive oil through the feed tube while the processor is running.

Puree until the pesto is smooth.

Add the parmigiano-reggiano and puree for 1 minute more.

Pour in a portion size (1 cup) freezer container.

Coat with a thin film of olive oil.

Freeze until you crave fresh pesto on a cold winter day.

This is the base for the pesto in Pesto, asta and Peas.