Any cook worth their kosher salt knows that there are endless – and endlessly wonderful – variations of pesto. The Glover Gardens version is fairly straightforward, with the exception of the nuts. The classic pesto recipe calls for pine nuts, but I like to boost the nuttiness factor with a combination of roasted mixed nuts along with fresh walnuts or pecans. This double-whammy of different nuts gives the pesto a deeper, richer flavor, and if I don’t watch closely, The Grill-Meister will steal it right out of the food processor, using it as a spread on water crackers or just dipping in with a spoon (the nerve!).
Now’s the time to make this pesto while the summer basil plants are still thriving; they tend to last into mid-fall, only fading out in late October or early November here in Southeast Texas.
Glover Gardens Nutty Pesto Recipe
Ingredients
- 1 cup roasted and salted mixed nuts, like Planters Deluxe
- ½ cup pecans or walnuts, not roasted
- 12 medium to large garlic cloves, peeled
- 2 cups fresh basil leaves, tightly packed
- 1 cup fresh flat-leaf parsley
- ¾ cup freshly ground Romano or Parmesan cheese (not from a green paper jar!)
- 2 cups good-quality extra virgin olive oil
- 1 tsp. red wine vinegar
- 2 pinches of red pepper flakes
- ½ tsp. freshly ground pepper, or more, to taste
- ¾ tsp. salt, or more to taste
Cooking Instructions
Purée the nuts and garlic in a food processor or blender, stopping to scrape the sides several times. The mixture should be a thick paste. Add the basil, parley and cheese and puree the mixture again. With the motor running, pour in the olive oil. Add the salt, pepper, red pepper and vinegar, then process again. Taste and add more salt and pepper if necessary.
Notes
This recipe yields a Texas-sized batch of pesto, since we usually make it before an epic long weekend with guests at Glover Gardens and have tons of uses for its magical herby-nutty-garlicky goodness. It will keep in the refrigerator for two to three weeks. You can make a half batch if you don’t need this much, or you can freeze some of it in ice trays to use in small amounts over the next six months.
Pesto is a Wonder Condiment!
How can I use this pesto, you might ask. Let me count the ways!
A no-brainer is as a sauce for pasta. Just toss some with your choice of pasta after its cooked but while its still hot and served immediately. You could jazz it up with additional ingredients like chicken or shrimp if you wanted, but it really only needs a little more salt, pepper and grated parmesan or romano, and perhaps a basil leaf or other green garnish. For a more substantive dish – an no extra work – choose premade tortellini or ravioli.
There are lots of other ways to use pesto with pasta, but I’ll leave that for another post. Let’s check out some Glover Gardens pesto uses. (Click the links in the captions for recipes and posts.)
Pesto is Great on a Burger
Pesto is Great IN a Burger
Pesto is Great on a Panini
Pesto Butter is Another Worthy Condiment
Pesto butter isn’t just good as a dip for radishes – you can spread it on french bread and toast it for an alternative to garlic bread or use it as a spread for corn on the cob. It’s fabulous!
Pesto is Perfect for Pizza
Pesto is Welcome on an Appetizer Platter
Pesto Adds to an Omelet
More Uses for Pesto
There are endless possibilities for adding flavor with pesto; here are some more:
- Swirl into eggs as you’re scrambling them or add to a frittata
- Pour atop cream cheese or goat cheese to make a quick throwdown spread
- Mix with sour cream or plain Greek yogurt to make a dip
- Toss with steamed asparagus, broccoli, green beans, brussels sprouts or peas to spice them up
- Add a layer of pesto into your next lasagna
- Add a dollop to brighten up a soup, like tomato soup or Glover Gardens Cauliflower Soup
- Use it as a dressing for pasta salad
- Toss with boiled new potatoes and chopped green onions for a take on potato salad
- Make finger sandwiches using pesto and cream cheese
- Add to sauteed mushrooms
- Add to risotto or other rice
- Tuck it under the skin before roasting a chicken or turkey
- Drizzle on grilled meat or fish after cooking
- Toss with mozzarella pearls and grape tomatoes for a quick side salad
- Add it atop a store-bought hummus to give it some class
There’s so much more! What do YOU do with pesto?
© 2023, Glover Gardens
I loved your recipes!!
In risotto!! Currently, I have leftovers from last week’s risotto with mushrooms and toasted walnuts. I’d love to persuade my husband to make a Caprese salad with pesto, but he’s unwavering in his preference for his favorite salad, and he thoroughly enjoys arranging each leaf on the plate 😆
OMG, I think your risotto sounds wonderful, and that pesto would be a great add! I’ve learned with my husband, a.k.a. the grill, Meister here, in these pages, that the only way I can get him to allow a change on one of his old favorites that he makes is to take over, and do it myself, as a surprise. I could see a Caprese arranged “leaf by leaf” as you said, atop a schmear of pesto, with everything else exactly like it would normally be. Hey, maybe I’ll try that! There is pesto in our future because I want it on the table for my upcoming birthday celebration.