Basil Pesto

Basil is another item in my garden that just keeps on giving. I end up having trouble coming up with ways to use it all summer long. Pesto is one of my favorites, and I love that it can be used in so may recipes. The basil is wonderful alone, but works great in pasta; warm pesto cream over your favorite noodle or tossed with a cold pasta salad. This weekend I whipped up a quick snack using the pesto. Instead of the standard pesto, sun-dried tomato and cheese terrine, I simply stirred a couple of spoonfuls of pesto into equal parts cream cheese and goat cheese, chopped some sun-dried tomatoes and stirred those into the mixture. Serve with crackers.

INGREDIENTS:
3 Large cloves of garlic, peeled and roughly chopped
1 tsp. Salt
1/4 C Pine nuts
2 C Basil
1/4 C plus 2 T Olive oil, the best quality
1/4 C Parmesan cheese, high quality freshly grated

PREP:
Place the garlic, salt, pine nuts and 2 T of olive oil into a blender. Blend, pulsing and scraping down the sides until the mixture is finely chopped. Add the basil to the blender and blend on low adding the remaining 1/4 C of oil. Blend in the cheese, just until mixed and taste for additional seasoning. Place in an airtight container, top with a small amount of oil to maintain color. I top with a layer of film(plastic wrap) pressed directly on top of the oil and then another layer of film over the container. Will store in the refrigerator up to one week. You can freeze for a month, but add the cheese after you thaw.