It's best to make the Basil Pesto recipe WITHOUT the Pine Nuts if you're going to freeze it, as the nuts may go rancid after a time. Trousers and I are still wading through Pesto I froze donkeys' years ago (don't take me literally on this kiddies, or people will never grace us with their company to dine at Holly Cottage ever again!).
Also, Basil Oil is still in use. I LOVE to cook with Basil Oil.....
AND, allegedly (really really wish I'd read this fascinating fact LAST week) if you rub Basil leaves on your skin, it deters Mosquitos? Trousers and I have a Water Feature below the open bedroom window, and I have been bitten to bu@@ery over the last fortnight. (See Wellie go 'Ouch!'....?)
Okay, here's a Pesto Sauce recipe I use:
Take some fresh basil leaves, enough to fill a cup (you can also use rocket or flatleaf parsley if you have a profusion of either, or combine them with the basil), and put them in a blender with a few garlic cloves and a few tablespoons of olive oil. Add a good handful of roasted pine nuts and another of grated Parmesan cheese with a bit of salt, and blend.
A tip for you Basil-growers that don't yet know this:
Keep pinching out the growing tips of Basil plants, so as to keep them bushy, and don't let them flower.
Happy Growing! |