Pesto Galore!

Not quite sure when or how it became October, but it is, and so I've been packing in outdoor activities to my schedule like its nobody's business.  Its getting colder everyday and I'm suddenly flash-backing to my winter days hiking up the hill to class at UVM, and I'm remembering how goddamn miserable it was to be unable to feel my toes after I left the house.  So before the first freeze, my pesto-inspired mom and I sat down to make a huge huge huge batch of pesto (from our very own basil plants in the backyard)!

We started by pulling all the leaves off of the plants. This was by far the most time consuming part of the entire project. I have never seen so much basil in my entire life.

Our ingredient list was really simple, because in my opinion, classic pesto is the BEST. No need to jazz it up with weird ingredients, just have good ol' comfort food. 

Our machine of choice was this food processor straight out of the 80s (sorry mom).  It did its job, but good god, it is old as dirt.

Final result: 15 cups of pesto! Holy SH*T! No clue what to even do with it all. We'll have at least a year supply in the freezer, and there is more basil to be picked outside too. Its overwhelming, but at least its totally delicious.

Here is the recipe we used (and keep in mind, this is for about 1.5 cups of pesto, NOT 15!)

• 2 cloves garlic
• 1/4 cup pine nuts
• 3/4 cup olive oil
• 2 cups packed basil leaves
• 3/4 cup shredded parmesan cheese
• Pepper to taste

Directions:

1. Blend the first three ingredients
2. Add the basil and blend again
3. Mix in the cheese & pepper
4. ENJOY!

My first creation was just some basic tortellini with veggies and pesto: Ta-da!

Ciao!