Basil, a spicy-sweet herb, is an antioxidant powerhouse known to improve digestive health, help fight cancer, and regulate our metabolisms.
This week’s recipe for Food Processor Pesto is as simple as it is delicious. It was sent to CCSA as part of a series of emails from our resident chef, Dr. Linda Doody. She began sharing her extensive collection of favorite recipes with friends, family, and the CCSA team as a means of maintaining connections during the COVID-19 pandemic and it has since become a company tradition.
Cooking is like painting or writing a song. Just as there are only so many notes or colors, there are only so many flavors – it’s how you combine them that sets you apart.
–Wolfgang Puck
Notes
Pesto is traditionally made with a mortar and pestle, which creates irregular pieces of basil and nuts that cling to pasta. To better approximate that texture, put the garlic into the food processor first and pulse 5 to 6 times until roughly chopped. Then add about half of the basil and pulse 5 to 6 times until the basil is roughly chopped. Add the pine nuts and salt, followed by the remaining basil leaves; pulse 10 to 12 times into a rough paste. Add the olive oil all at once and process until just combined. Stir in the cheese. The pesto should not be smooth.
Ingredients
- 2 cups fresh basil leaves
- ½ cup olive oil
- 2 Tbsp pine nuts or walnuts (Pine nuts are preferable but walnuts work in a pinch)
- 2 cloves garlic, peeled and lightly crushed with a heavy knife
- 1 tsp salt
- ½ cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese
- 2 Tbsp freshly grated Romano pecorino cheese
- 2 Tbsp butter, softened to room temperature
Instructions
- Put basil, oil, garlic, nuts, and salt in a food processor and process at high speed. Stop from time to time and scrape ingredients off the sides with a rubber spatula. When the ingredients are evenly blended (see Note below), pour into a bowl and mix in cheeses using a spoon. Add butter and blend. Before spooning over pasta, add a tablespoon of hot pasta water.