Bright and pungent, loaded with basil, olive oil, pine nuts, garlic, and Italian cheese, this wonderfully green sauce doesn’t require heat but still can steal the show. The recipes of pesto often vary but basic preparations always center on the previously mentioned basil, garlic, pine nuts, and olive oil, with Italian cheese. All the components are blended together in a food processor into an extremely fine consistency.
Recently, Chef Anahita Dhondy took to Instagram and shared the recipe of a creamy pesto sauce that only takes five minutes to get ready but tastes amazing. She wrote ‘Who knew, a simple blend of fresh basil with cheese would taste so GOOD! Well, the Romans knew, there is a Latin poem from the year 25 CE that describes pounding together herbs, cheese, and oil, technically making pesto possibly the oldest sauce in European cuisine, isn’t that amazing!’. Before you start wondering about the recipe, here you go.
Ingredients
- 2 cups fresh basil
- ½ cup olive oil
- 2 cloves (finely chopped)
- 3 tsp walnuts
- 2 tbsp parmesan cheese
- 2 tbsp butter
- Salt to taste
- Pasta Ravioli (you could use any pasta of your choice)
Method
- To make the pesto, wash the basil gently then add basil, garlic, olive oil, walnuts, and salt to the processor.
- Blitz this well and take it out in a container
- Boil the pasta of your choice as per the instructions on the package.
- Once the pasta is boiled, take it out on a plate, and smother it with pesto.
- To dilute the pesto a bit, add 1 tbsp of the pasta water. Grate some Parmesan cheese on top and enjoy this warm and cheesy!
Some tips by the chef
- Do not heat the pesto in the pan like you would cook any other pasta sauce.
- Just spoon the pesto over the pasta, distributing it evenly.
- Make sure you add olive oil on top of the pesto after you blend them to prevent decolorization. Use fresh basils only so they taste absolutely amazing and are not sour.
- Store in the fridge and it can last you 10 days
- This sauce is perfect for Any big thick pasta to coat it!
Enjoy!!