Basic Pesto Recipe without Nuts
Pesto is one of my husband’s favorite pasta dishes. It is a healthy sauce that goes well with pasta, quinoa, and rice. It tastes good on salmon and chicken, and it is adds a nice pep to Alfredo sauce or meat sauce. When you have to harvest a large amount of basil from your garden to keep it from going to seed this is a great solution.
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INGREDIENTS:
4-6 cups fresh basil
1 cup grated parmesan cheese
1/3 cup minced garlic
1/3 olive oil
1 tsp salt
1 tsp pepper
2 cups grape tomatoes, halved
2 cups mozzarella balls or fresh mozzarella cut into 1/2 inch cubes
In a large blender (I use my Ninja), add basil, parmesan, garlic, olive oil, salt and pepper. Blend on pulse until it reaches a consistency that you are happy with. If it is too thick, add more olive oil or water.
Cook the pasta al dente and mix with the pesto. Add tomatoes and mozzarella directly into the dish or serve as a garnish on each plate. You can substitute quinoa or rice for the pasta if you desire. You can also spread this on toast, use as a dipping sauce for garlic knots, or spread on top of pizza dough instead of red sauce. I like to use up the pesto either the same day or the next day, because it doesn’t seem to last long in the fridge.
