Pesto - Marcella Hazan

Total Time: 17 mins Preparation Time: 15 mins Cook Time: 2 mins

Ingredients

• Servings: 6
• 2 cups fresh basil leaves, tightly packed
• 1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil
• 3 tablespoons pine nuts
• 2 garlic cloves, chopped fine before putting in the processor
• salt
• 1/3 cup parmesan cheese, freshly grated (parrmigiano-reggiano)
• 2 tablespoons pecorino romano cheese, freshly grated (or pecorino fiore sardo)
• 3 tablespoons butter, softened to room temperature

Recipe

• 1 briefly soak and wash the basil in cold water, and gently pat it thoroughly dry with paper towels.
• 2 put the basil, olive oil, pine nuts, chopped garlic, and an ample pinch of salt in the processor bowl, and process to a uniform, creamy consistency.
• 3 transfer to a bowl, and mix in the two grated cheeses by hand. it is worth the slight effort to do it by hand to obtain the notably superior texture it produces.
• 4 when the cheese has been evenly amalgamated with the other ingredients, mix in the softened butter, distributing it uniformly into the sauce.
• 5 when spooning the pesto over pasta, dilute it slightly with a tablespoon or two of the hot water in which the pasta was cooked.
• 6 freezing pesto: make the sauce through to the end of step 2, cover with a layer of olive oil and freeze it without cheese and butter in it. add the cheese and butter when it is thawed, just before serving.