My Lime Green Kitchen

Posts Tagged ‘Basil’

Pesto:

2 cups as full as you can fill them of washed basil leaves (mash them down and get as many as you can in the cup)
1/4 – 3/8 cup olive oil
1/2 cup parmesan cheese
1/2 cup pine nuts
2 T. chopped garlic
1 T. Fruit Fresh or lemon juice

In a food processor, chop/blend the olive oil, cheese, pine nuts and garlic.

Add the basil leaves and Fruit Fresh and process til desired consistency. I like mine just barely chopped up.

Put into small containers and freeze. I often freeze mine in ice cube trays but they seem to have disappeared. Once it’s frozen, dump them into a zipper freezer bag. For this batch, I filled the little 1/2 cup containers I had and then I sprayed Pam on plastic wrap and wrapped up 1/2 cup amounts.

Then the little packets went into the freezer bag.

If you love basil, you should like this recipe and it’s real easy.

Cut however many potatoes you want into small chunks. Brown them (I used bacon fat but I’m betting some of you are squealing in horror after reading that!). Season them but don’t put as much salt as you might otherwise.

Lightly toast some pine nuts.

Dump the pine nuts in with the potatoes.

Squirt in some Pesto. As much or as little as you’d like. We like a lot! If you can’t find this at your local store, you can order it from Amazon.com. That’s what I have to do.

Mix it all up. Yummmm!

Basil, Mozzarella & Tomato Salad

2 – 3 large tomatoes, peeled and chopped into bite size pieces
8 oz. fresh mozzarella, cut or torn into bite size pieces
black olives, pitted and drained (as many as you like)
red pepper flakes, as many as desired
sea salt
black pepper
1/4 c. fresh basil leaves, torn into large pieces (mainly to break the leaves so they release more flavor)
1/2 tsp. fresh oregano, chopped (or 1/4 tsp. dried)
1/2 c. olive oil
4 T. balsamic vinegar
2 – 3 cloves garlic, chopped

Mix the balsamic, olive oil and garlic. Set aside.

Place the tomatoes, black olives, mozzarella, basil leaves, red pepper flakes, oregano, salt and pepper in a bowl with a tight fitting lid.

Pour the vinaigrette mixture the salad. Stir well. Refrigerate several hours before serving. While it’s sitting in the fridge, stir every now and then. If the bowl doesn’t leak, just turn it upside down and then after a while, turn it right side up again.

This will keep for several days in the fridge but it is better the first or second day.