Pesto is one of those things you can just pick up in the supermarket, but I suggest you don't. With a very little effort you can make your own and it is so sumptuously and aromatically delicious once you make it you won't think of doing anything else.
Pesto works with so many things (if you can hold back from eating it by the spoonful or scraping out the bowl), with pasta, with chicken, with courgetti (more about that in a moment). Turning simple quick meals into feasts. Last night it was Pesto with Linguini and tiny tomatoes.
A couple of things about pesto:
Keep it well sealed with a little olive oil on top and it will keep for a few weeks in the fridge.
Pesto will freeze but don’t leave it in the freezer for more than a month.
Here’s what you’ll need for one pot.
80g basil (I buy Majestic basil leaves from Waitrose)
50g pine nuts
50g parmesan (I use Essential Grated Parmesan from Waitrose)
2 cloves of garlic (or more - some people toast the garlic as well – I haven’t tried that yet)
150ml best olive oil
Salt to taste
Strip the basil leaves from the stems – the 80g is without stems
Take the skins off the garlic
Place all the ingredients in a food processor and process until smooth. It’s at this stage you’ll want to start tasting – just warning you. And you’re done.
All you need to do to create a superb supper is cook some dried linguini, drain it then mix in your pesto in the pot adding a little extra olive oil if you want to.
Top this for extra flavour with some deliciously sweet cherry tomatoes and accompany with your wine of choice - a particular favourite is Chateau Musar, a deep and intense red wine from Gaston Hochar in Lebanon which you can find here.
That's it, dinner done in a flash.
