My mom is not a fan of pesto, so this was not something we ate when I was growing up. However, she loved pistachios and those were around the house and I think they lend an earthy quality to pesto when they are used in place of the traditional pine nuts. My favorite uses are on roasted zucchini or stirred into warm pasta (my preference is for orecchiette since the shape holds the pesto nicely).
Ingredients
1 cup shelled, unsalted, raw pistachios
3/4 cup torn fresh basil leaves
1 clove garlic, peeled
1/4 teaspoon coarse sea salt
Freshly ground pepper
1/2 cup extra-virgin olive oil
3 tbsps. Lemon juice
1 oz finely grated parmesan cheese
1. Put the pistachios into a food processor and grind into the texture of fine gravel. Add the remaining ingredients and whizz briefly again. Taste and adjust the seasoning. Use straightaway to retain the green color.
You are way too kind in your thoughtful comments! I definitely have considered videos and creating graphics and all kinds of fun things for the site, but bandwidth is a challenge right now since I am working full time and need to squeeze in time for the site after work hours! I will definitely let you know what I plan to do as soon as I am able! Many thanks for your interest and for making my day! :-)
Hi Emily! I have made pesto and frozen it as it does need to be eaten fairly quickly in order to retain the green freshness of the basil in a traditional pesto. I have experimented with arugula or dandelions as a "green" and used multiple types of nuts including walnuts and almonds. The effect is the same, however, and you need to keep it fresh and really the only way to do that is to freeze it!
P.S. I hope you consider vlogging. If you add a mirrored counter cover, you could easily develop your own YouTube channel. I don't know how far you want to go with this, but you're so beautiful, have a lovely broadcast voice - you could really pull it off.
Question, Kara: I know it's best to use pesto right away. If you want to store it, though, is it best to freeze it? Just curious as I have a daughter who eats pesto nearly every night, lol, and I'd like to introduce her to various pestos like this one to broaden her palate.