Pesto Sauce

Agate Cove Recipes : Pesto Sauce

This is a superb, bullet-proof recipe for classical pesto. If you make it exactly as described, people will think you are Italian.

Ingredients
2 cups	basil
1/2 cup	olive oil
2 Tbsp	pine nuts
2 cloves	garlic
1 tsp	salt
1/2 cup	Parmesan, grated
2 Tbsp	Romano cheese, grated
3 Tbsp	butter, softened (not melted)

Directions
In a blender, puree the basil, olive oil, pine nuts, garlic, and salt. Pour the puree into a bowl. Using a spoon, stir in both cheeses. Finally, stir in the butter with a spoon. Note: It’s very important to use a spoon to stir in the cheeses and butter — it makes a real difference in the resulting texture! You can freeze pesto, and then simply place the bowl in a hot water bath to reheat it without melting the cheese. This recipe is from “The Classic Italian Cookbook”, by Marcella Hazan. This is an excellent cookbook!

Last Revised: 12-Aug-2005