Get in my belly...

I love basil like few other things. If I'd had a child, it would have been green, with basil shaped ears. I just love the stuff.

I fell hard for basil when I discovered pesto *many* years ago. back then, we weren't real flush with cash, and we couldn't afford the extravagance of pine nuts, so I used walnuts, and when they were on sale, I used pecans. Even though those early versions lacked the creaminess of pine nuts, it was enough to make me happy. After all, it was the flavor of basil and garlic and were the real hook for me.

When we had our first garden, I wanted to grow basil, but I struggled. Cold weather, pests and rookie mistakes combined to make for less than ideal results. This year, I focused my efforts on slaying those dragons, and I grew a bumper crop. It's still growing, as a matter of fact. I'm hoping for another batch of pesto in a few weeks before the overnight temperatures kill the last of my green friend. Then again, this last pruning was so severe, I may have killed it already. I'll plant more next year. A lot more.

Pesto is one of the easiest things to make, and it packs a punch. I pluck the leaves off the stems, and go right into the food processor with them. Sea salt flakes, fresh ground black pepper, a lot of garlic, generous handfuls of pine nuts, shredded parmesan cheese, or asiago and enough good quality olive oil to bring it together, and, viola, pesto! I don't use a recipe. I just add stuff, and test taste it until it makes me happy. There is no screwing up pesto, in my opinion. The only way to screw up pesto is to not make it.

Once you have it, what can you do with it? Lots of things. Scoop some into fresh cooked and drained pasta. Add enough pasta water to help it spread evenly through your noodles, top with shredded parmesan, and gobble it up.

Try toasting a bagel, top with a little cream cheese, and a small smear of pesto.

How about caprese salad? Thin slices of fresh mozzarella, fresh tomato slices, and a scoop of pesto swirled with olive oil...dot the top of your mozzarella and tomatoes for the freshest salad in all of summer-time land!

Try pesto deviled eggs. Cut your mayonnaise by half, and add that half back in in the form of pesto.

Mix a little pesto with a couple tablespoons of cream cheese, and scramble it with eggs. It's creamy deliciousness.

To store it, press plastic wrap over the top, add a lid, and refrigerate for 1-2 days. Longer than that, and it will start to brown. You can always add a sprinkle of ascorbic acid to the pesto to slow the browning process, but I've not had to do that. I've frozen it with great results. Just drizzle about 1/4" good quality olive oil over the top of the prepared pesto (this minimizes browning by creating a sort of seal to keep the air from reaching the pesto), pop a lid on the container, and into the freezer. I've kept it as long as a month, not because it went bad, but because I used it up.

The possibilities are endless.