Had some leftover fresh basil, and thought “what can one make with basil?” Pesto came to mind, of course. No pine nuts in the house, so thought pistaccio nuts might be a (reasonably passable) substitute. And even if they didn’t completely work, it’d be an interesting experiment. Turns out the flavors fit together quite nicely. Not as much of a bite as regular pesto, more mellow and earthy.
Time:
- 10 minutes with blender or food processor, 40 minutes without.
Ingredients:
- 3/4 cup olive oil
- 2 cups ground fresh basil leaves
- 1 cup pistaccio
- 4 cloves garlic (yes, I like garlic)
- 1/2 teaspoon pepper
- 3/4 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 cup grated parmesan cheese (this would have been perfect, if only i had had any).
Preparation:
- grind basil leaves and pistaccio nuts (if you have a food processor…if not, then finely finely chop them and waste half an hour doing so like i had to do).
- add garlic, well crushed by a garlic press
- add salt, pepper, cheese
- add olive oil little by little, mixing, until the pesto is the desired consistency (may not use all the olive oil. it depends on the cheese and nuts)
- chill