Wednesday, July 1, 2009

Walnut pesto

Overwhelmed by the state of our overgrown basil pot*, D whipped up some pesto the other night. We were out of pine nuts, but I mentioned that I'd seen recipes where people use walnuts. It worked beautifully.

pesto!

Walnut pesto (adapted from The Silver Spoon, serves 4 - 6)

25 leaves of fresh basil (or a few large handfuls)
1/3 cup walnuts
1 cup Parmesan cheese
1/3 cup Romano cheese (D actually used a Parmesan romano blend)
3 cloves fresh garlic
Scant 1/2 cup olive oil
Sea salt, to taste

1. Toss everything except the olive oil and the salt in the food processor and blend until a paste forms.

2. Add olive oil in a slow stream. Taste before adding salt.

pesto!

D sprinkled some chevre on top. Because everything is better with a bit of goat cheese.

*Basil really likes to be hacked down regularly. Don't be nervous - trim it all the way down to the last couple of leaves on the stalk. It will pop right back up.

26 comments:

  1. easy, fast and fresh. this is definitely my type of meal!

    ReplyDelete
  2. yum...this looks incredible. now i just need some overgrown basil!

    ReplyDelete
  3. Pesto is my fave. I never get tired of it. Spinach and arugula also make great pestos.

    ReplyDelete
  4. oh WOW - that sounds delicious!

    ReplyDelete
  5. I've never tried it with walnuts before, but sounds like an awesome dinner!

    ReplyDelete
  6. What a brilliant idea! I've never made homemade pesto because I can't bring myself to buy those uber-expensive pine nuts. This sounds like a great version for a cheap-o like me!

    ReplyDelete
  7. Fabulous! Would it be terrible of me to ask you to post a photo of this post-hack job on the basil plant? Hee, thanks :)

    ReplyDelete
  8. Yay!! I discovered your blog today, and I fall in love with it!! You are so creative!! I’ll be subscribing to your feed and I hope you write again soon!

    Next thing I have to do is... ruffly headband :P Thx for the idea :)

    http://szynal.com/

    ReplyDelete
  9. Where do you cut the basil? Do you cut the older leaves or do you cut off the new growth? I'm going to try it. : )

    I was just thinking I'd like to make pesto today...

    ReplyDelete
  10. i've also used almonds in pesto and that works just fine too. cheaper than pine nuts... i admit i am scared to cut back my basil. i guess i should though!

    ReplyDelete
  11. I love to make pesto and freeze it in ice-cube trays when the basil bush gets to be too unruly. Mmmmmmm.

    ReplyDelete
  12. ooooh, yum! That would make a wonderful dinner this week! ;)

    ReplyDelete
  13. Perfect timing! We got a bunch of basil in our farm box this week and i've been planning pesto--i'm going to use this recipe for sure!

    have also made pesto with hazelnuts, with good results!

    ReplyDelete
  14. No, really - you can hack it all the way down, so that there are just nubbins of stem and a couple of leaves. I'll try to get a picture to show you. I swear, it pops right back up so you end up getting more basil in the end.

    ReplyDelete
  15. Homemade pesto is sooo fabulous. That's why I named my dog pesto. Plus, he's walnut-colored, which is why I assumed your post was a tribute to him! haha

    ReplyDelete
  16. Your pesto looks good! I was surprised to learn that basil plants like to be trimmed so much, this is definitely good to know since I haven't been using my plant very much in fear that it would not grow back.

    ReplyDelete
  17. I needed this! I'm making a goat cheese spread this weekend and it calls for pesto.

    ReplyDelete
  18. yum. love the pic, too! ;)

    i'm such a NON-gardener, i've been stressing about what to do with my sad basil. thanks!
    xox

    ReplyDelete
  19. Hi! After reading about the wonders of basil-trimming, I found this online about how to prune basil and thought you might enjoy it.

    http://www.sunset.com/garden/flowers-plants/nine-indispensable-herbs-00400000011943/

    ReplyDelete
  20. this sounds + looks sooo yummy. i've filed it away to try very soon! thanks :]

    ReplyDelete
  21. Totally agree about the goat cheese. Looks gorgeous, as always.

    ReplyDelete
  22. We have basil coming out our ears right now and I've frozen some but think I'll be craving something pesto-y this weekend. Thanks for the inspiration!

    ReplyDelete
  23. This looks yummy. We are making this tomorrow for dinner. I have an indoor basil plant that is going crazy and I have walnuts so this is perfect. I love the addition of the goat cheese

    ReplyDelete
  24. Made this tonight - SOOOOOO good. I was out of pine nuts, and this saved the day!

    ReplyDelete

Trying captchas this time - better or worse than having to log in to comment? Let me know! Sorry for all the hoops but the spam has been terrible lately!