While it may be simple to buy pesto in tubs from the grocery store, homemade pesto made with fresh basil throughout the season is far superior. The only issue is that because basil has a rather short season, you must acquire it (or harvest it from your garden) in great quantities when it is at its prime and use it straight away to make lots of pesto. You don't have to consume it all at once, either, as pesto freezes beautifully.
Pesto is also quite simple to freeze. Pesto can be frozen in two different methods, each with different applications. Smaller portions of pesto can be added to other dishes to give them a summer taste boost when the weather becomes less warm and sunny. Both bigger portions of pesto can be mixed with pasta for a quick dinner and smaller portions of pesto can be frozen. Use the frozen pesto within six months, whether you're freezing a little or a lot of it. Place frozen pesto in the refrigerator or microwave it on the defrost setting, stopping and stirring as needed, to thaw it out.
Here’s how you can preserve your pesto.
• Use a quarter sheet pan or even the toaster oven tray and line it with wax or parchment paper to freeze pesto.
• Spread the freshly produced pesto evenly so that it is 1/4-inch thick on the baking sheet. Put the pesto in the freezer for a few hours to harden, then press another sheet of wax or parchment paper onto it.
• After the pesto sheet has frozen, cut it into wedges, put the wedges in a small zip-top freezer bag, label it, and store it in the freezer.
• You can take out the bag whenever you need pesto and cut out whichever much or little you require. The thin film of pesto defrosts quite quickly due to its thinness.
