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Pesto is so versatile and delicious! Today I’m going to share a simple recipe my mother-in-law taught me, before I knew how to grow my own basil. She always had a wonderful crop and made this pesto. You can leave out the cheese for a Paleo version.
This version has Parmesan cheese, but you can easily leave out the cheese for a Paleo/Whole 30 version.
- 4 Cups Fresh, packed basil leaves
- 1 Cup Shredded Parmesan cheese
- 1 Cup Chopped, unsalted walnuts or pine nuts I like the flavor of pine nuts, but walnuts are so much less expensive
- 2-3 Cloves of fresh garlic
- 1 Tsp Lemon juice
- Pinch Salt
- Pinch Pepper
- 1-1.5 Cups Olive Oil
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Pluck off the basil leaves, discarding the stems and leaves. If any leaves have browned, discard. Rinse, and pat dry, allowing to fully dry for 20 minutes or so. Meanwhile, prepare the other ingredients. Shred the Parmesan with a grater (don’t use Parmesan from a shaker), and peel and chop the garlic (although you can put in the whole cloves if desired). When basil is dry, add 4 packed cups to the food processor. Pulse just a few times. Add in the other ingredients, except for the oil. Pulse a few times just to combine. With processor running, add in the oil from the top pour spout, pausing occasionally to scrape the sides. Add oil and blend until desired consistency is reached. Freeze, or keep fresh in fridge for up to 3 days.
Take a look at this amazing crop. This was October 5 this year! The last of the basil, but I still had a few more green tomatoes at that point.
The first thing to do is to prepare the basil. Pluck off the leaves, get them into a colander, rinse. Discard any stems, brown leaves, and flowers.
Spread out the basil leaves, pat with a paper towel, and allow to dry on another paper towel. At this point, you can wrap the damp leaves in a dry paper towel, put in a ziploc bag, and keep in the fridge for up to 24 hours. You can still make the pesto after 24 hours, but the leaves will begin to brown, and you may lose some of your hard earned basil. 
Put about 4 cups of packed basil into the food processor, and pulse just a few times to make room for the other ingredients.
Put in the rest of the ingredients, except the olive oil. Pulse until just combined. Add the olive oil through the top while the processor is running, checking periodically to scrape the sides, and make sure the consistency is how you want it. Add more oil for a more liquid pesto dip, less for a pastier spread. Now you can freeze it, or keep it fresh in the fridge for 2-3 days. Enjoy!
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