(Basil) Pesto Sauce

When Alexandra was about two years old, linguine with pesto sauce used to be our standard Sunday night supper on the boat before driving home to Cambridge. Linguine with pesto rolled on a fork, then dipped in Parmesan cheese was referred to as a “trolley-rolley” (both words pronounced with long "o").




Combine in food processor bowl fitted with metal blade and chop finely:

2 c fresh basil leaves, washed and dried

2-3 cloves garlic, coarsely chopped
1/4 c grated Parmesan cheese*
1/3 c olive oil (I use just enough so all ingredients blend smoothly)

Add:

¼ c pine nuts or walnuts

Pulse to chop fine but not so fine that all texture is lost.

This can be refrigerated (or kept in boat ice box) in a tightly sealed container for 2-3 weeks. But if you don’t intend to use within a week, I would suggest freezing.

If pesto is frozen in an ice cube tray (wrapped tightly in plastic wrap) it can be thawed in small quantities.

*IF I am freezing or going to store in the boat icebox, I don’t put Parmesan cheese in the sauce. Rather I serve Parmesan cheese with the pesto.

Reviewed 6/20/2017