What is pesto you ask? Well pesto, pronounced pest-o, is a sauce originating in Genoa, Italy. It traditionally consists of crushed garlic, basil and pine nuts blended with olive oil and parmesan. The name comes from the Genoese word pestâ (Italian: pestare), which means to pound, to crush, in reference to the original method of preparation, with marble mortar and wooden pestle (get it? pesto? pesta? pestle?...Pretty awesome huh? Remember to reference the bottom of this blog for more on this). However, the slightly untraditional and yet so much easier way to make pesto is not "pounded" but thrown half-hazardly into a food processor.
Lovely shade of green, no?
A basil leaf from the garden. Potent yet very tasty little buggers.
These jars will stay good in the fridge for up to 8 weeks, and up to 6 months in the freezer.
You can't really tell in this picture, but the two bottles on the bottom are a different
shade than the ones on the top.
Why? Because I planted two different basil plants in my herb box this year.
Large leafed "Sweet Basil" and the smaller leafed "Pesto Basil"
I wanted to experiment to see which made the better pesto.
Verdict: I cant tell the difference. LOL
Pesto is great on pasta, chicken, fish or bread. It is a well known fact that I really like warm pesto-butter French bread. If you have not had it yet imagine the yummiest garlic bread you’ve ever had. Then add 40% more flavortastic-ness! To make pest-butter you mix ½ cup butter with 2 tablespoons of pesto. Then you spread that mixture over your favorite French bread and broil it until the butter is melted and the edges of the bread look golden. Yummmmmm!
Soooo, if you have yet to experience that exceptional taste that is pesto-butter French bread I suggest two things:
1) TRY IT! But you can’t just go to the store and buy it. Store bought pesto is far too oily. So if you can get your hands on the homemade stuff that is the way to go.
2) Come on over to my house and I will share with you the amazingness that is pesto-butter French bread!
Additional
I recognize that I have made some…o.k. quite a few new words in this post. Nevertheless, please keep in mind that some of the most used and beloved words have been made up, and in most cases were complete b.s. In fact, you could say all words started that way. Like the aforementioned words pesto, pesta, and pestle. These words were derived from the same Italian word pestare, and yet one could argue that they were MADE UP!…Yup, I still think that’s pretty awesome! My made up words may not be in the Webster’s dictionary, but they are most definitely derived forms of bonafide words found in the English language. I like to think that I am just adding to the cacophony that is the English language.
