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Basil Pesto

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It’s hot outside, so let’s to talk about basil pesto! Have you made it yet? Pesto is one of my absolute favourite, ultra-flavourful sauces. Great pesto tastes fresh, herbal, nutty, garlicky and luxurious, all at once.


Homemade pesto is infinitely more tasty than store-bought varieties. While pesto always seems fancy and gourmet, homemade pesto is very easy to make in your food processor or blender.

Pesto originated in Liguria, Italy, where pesto is made in a mortar and pestle. (In fact, “pestâ” means “to pound.”) I don’t have the patience to crush basil by hand, one handful at a time. So, I recommend using your food processor or a mixer jar.


Also, the main ingredient of the dish is pinenuts but, I have substituted it with some cashews. You can also add some walnuts. Drizzle a layer of olive oil on the top to avoid the pesto change its colour to dark green. Keeping it cool is very important otherwise it will spoil the taste of the pesto. So always store it in an airtight container and keep it in a refrigerator.

You can serve pesto on:
Pasta: Generally speaking, the best pasta shapes for pesto are thin spaghetti or angel hair, twisted shapes like fusilli, and bow-ties.
Pizza
Sandwiches
Basically anything that could benefit from a jolt of fresh basil sauce!


Ingredients: 
1 cup fresh basil leaves,
Few garlic pods,
Few cashews/pinenuts,
1 tbsp good quality olive oil, 
1 Amul cheese cube/Cheddar cheese/Parmesan cheese, 
Salt & pepper to taste

Method: 
  1. Grind all the ingredients together to a fine paste.
  2. Store this in an airtight container.
  3. Toss it in a pasta, salad, sandwiches, etc.

Notes:
  • Replace the Parmesan with 1 tablespoon nutritional yeast to make it vegan.
  • Replace parmesan cheese with regular cheddar cheese.
  • Replace pine nuts with walnuts or cashews or sunflower seeds.

Did you make this recipe?
Please let me know how it turned out for you! Leave a comment below and share a picture on Instagram with the hashtag #thefitdotme
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