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Not wanting to be accused of highly-punchable cultural/culinary tourism, I’ll preface this by saying that while I myself am not Italian, I was in fact taught the basic principles of pesto-fu by an Italian. A real one. And she assured me that although purists sniff and claim that true pesto is only ever made with basil, extra-virgin olive oil, and pinenuts, there are allowances to be made for creativity. Purists are also stoopid enough to use a mortar and pestle, and who’s got the time for that? Sod purists.
Pesto: nuts, fresh herbs, olive oil. Garlic and pepper to taste. If you can’t combine those elements in a way that tastes better to you than the stuff in jars, fair enough, I suppose, although you are officially mad. The ‘recipe’ I keep in my head to has been honed to fit my tastebuds over a lengthy period of trial and error; by which I mean it suits me but it wouldn’t sell very well. So, the other nights’ formula involved a big bunch of fresh coriander from the shop across the road, chopped finely and thrown in the food processor. A big handful of hazelnuts from the sack I got given recently, chopped finely, thrown in food processor (don’t ask me for the exact number of hazelnuts, or the weight: a handful, alright? One handful = as many as you can grab). Five or six cloves of garlic, chopped finely, yadda yadda., and throw some crunched black pepper in too if you want. Blend it up in the mixer, pouring in olive oil until you’re happy with the consistency; I rather prefer it more oily than dry, but still full of crunchy bits, but you can have it any combination of smooth/gritty/dry/oily that tickles your fancy.
Hey pesto (sorry). You’ve made half a ton of the stuff, which’ll sit around all week in a jar in the fridge, or will freeze. And it tastes better than supermarket pesto, and it’s cheaper. Especially if you grow your own herbs, which is a piece of piss, and buy your olive oil wholesale. Oh and other kinds of fresh herbs will do (although *don’t* attempt it with dried. Ugh), I got a ginormous mint bush outside my back door, so during the summer it’s groovy mint pesto all the time. I have absolutely no idea whether a cannabis pesto would work, but it’s *very* moreish, so be careful if you try.
Serve with grated Parmesan stirred through, or not. Depends how flush you are. According to my sources though, there isn’t a law. |
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