Italian Recipes: All About Pesto

Italian Recipes: All About Pesto

Italian Recipes: All About Pesto

In the old days in Italy, when the basil was ready for harvest, pesto was made with a mortar and pestle and if so inclined one can still make it that way. I bet it tastes even better, but I must confess I never tried it. I do know for a fact that mayonnaise began in Corsica and it was the job of the father, not the mother, to make the week's batch every Sunday. Something tells me that pesto may be 'a man's job' as well (next time I talk to my friend Francesco I'll ask). I'm also curious as to how it was kept in the old days because clearly pesto is one way of getting the hard months of no fresh basil. These days you merely fill ice cube trays with the ambrosia and it freezes wonderfully.

The basic ingredients for pesto are basil, olive oil, parmesan or other hard grated Italian cheese like romano, and nuts. "What?" Some may exclaim, "you are no authority on Italian cooking at all!" But I'm here to testify that as surely as Mt. Vesuvius did not blow it's top over the way Pompeians were watering down the wine, I am committing no offense to good and sensible, down to earth Italian cooking. No, you don't have to use pine nuts, and yes, a variety of hard cheeses are acceptable.

In fact, every time I make pesto (with a blender!), which, appropriately enough is once a year when my basil bushes have finally had enough of the cold, I like to try a new nut. Actually, I find pine nuts to be a bit overwhelming (ditto for chocolate mole) and my favorite choice so far has been walnuts, which adds a nice earthy touch fit for the colder months. Cashews proved to be interesting but intolerable when eaten with gusto, and almonds are nice. Next on my try list is macadamia nuts, over which I'm being careful not to predict anything.

Finally, though pesto is best known as being eaten with pasta, the next time you make minestrone top each bowl off with a spoonful of pesto. After that your minestrone will be lonely without it.

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