Poor Man's Pesto

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Source: The Mediterranean Vegan Kitchen

Servings: about 1 cup

 

 

Poor Man's Pesto

 

The name pesto derives from the thousand-year-old Ligurian tradition of

making this sauce in a mortar with a pestle. Traditional pesto

Gennovese almost always includes a combination of Parmesan and pecorino

Tomano cheese with the following exceptions: when the pesto is to be

stirred into soups of when the household can't afford the

cheese-expensive for some, even in Italy. NO matter. The following

cheese-free recipe, adapted for a food processor or blender, proves yet

again that fruity green olive oil is the heart and garden fresh basil

the soul of good pesto. It produces a thick, rather creamy sauce, which

is thinned in monst pasta recipes with a little pasta cooking liquid or

vegetable broth.

 

3 cups loosely packed fresh basil leaves

6 TBS. pine nuts

2 to 4 large cloves garlic

3/4 tsp. coarse salt, or to taste

6 TBS fruity extra-virgin olive oil

 

Combine the basil, pine nuts, garlic, and salt in a food processor

fitted with the metal blade or in blender. Process or blend until the

ingredients are finely chopped, craping down the sides of the work bowl

as necessary. Add the oild and process until smooth and creamy. If not

using immediatly, store tightly covered in the refrigerator for up to 2

days, or place in ice cube trays and cover tighly with plasitc wrap, and

store in the freezer no longer then 1 month of the best flavor.

 

per about 1 TBS:

73 calories

2g protien

7 g. total fat

1g Saturated fat

0mg cholesterol

2g. Carbohydrates

0g. Dietary fiber

90mg Sodium

 

Cooks Tips:

Becasue pesto freezes well, you might want to make more if you have lots

of basil on hand. For every extra cup of loosely packed basil leaves,

add the flollowing to the above recipe: 2 TBS pine nuts, 1 clove garlic,

(or to taste) 1/4 tsp coarse salt (or to taste) and 2 TBS olive oil.