Homemade Pesto

This pesto was inspired by the California Sizzles recipe book. There's nothin like a great homemade pesto that can be used for all sorts of dishes! So I took the plunge and made it. Well, I'd say it was better than store-bought pesto, but I thought it was overpowering from the garlic, which made it taste spicy almost with a zing kick at the end. Long story short and after trial and error I created my very own pesto. Viola! The recipe is below.

Ingredients:

1/2 cup pine nuts

2 cups of basil

2 cups of spinach

1 garlic clove

1 Tbsp. extra virgin olive oil

2 Tbsp. grated parmesan cheese

3 Tbsl. warm water

1/4 tsp. salt

pinch of pepper

Directions:

Blend all the above ingredients in a food prep or blender. I have a baby food maker over here, so I just used that and it worked just fine! You can add some more olive oil at the end if the pesto seems to be more on the dryer side (sometimes I do that). Store in an airtight container in the fridge.

*Note: The pesto normally lasts up to around 3-4 days in the fridge.

*Makes about 3/4 cups

Uses:

Salmon (that's a favorite in this house; directions below)

Eggs

Pasta Dishes

Chicken Sandwich

Pizza

Tortellini

Pasta Salad

Pesto Hummus

Pesto Shrimp

The list is endless!

Salmon Dish:

Season your salmon with salt and pepper, place them in the baking dish, then generously top and spread on each piece of salmon with the pesto, bake it and viola, you're done! I normally cook salmon at 450 degrees F for about 12-15 minutes, but it all depends on the cut of thickness.

Enjoy!