Basil and Rocket Pesto

Making your own pesto is one of those things that once you have done it once and tasted those fresh flavours together, you’ll never want to buy “supermarket pesto” ever again!!

This recipe makes about 350g which lasts for up to 8 days in a sealed jar in the fridge. Add a little extra olive oil on top before closing the jar and this will help preserve it for longer.

This pesto has become a bit of a lifeline for me in the kitchen - you really can use it in almost anything; pastas, mushrooms, risottos, gnocchi, salads, baked fish or chicken, eggs, toasted sandwiches and so much more.

Click the photo to watch how it's done.

Ingredients

Chapter One

• Basil, large handful

• Rocket, small handful

• 20g parmesan small chunks

• 1 garlic glove

• 1/2 cup cashews (I love using cashews as it creates a great chunky texture)

Chapter Two

• Juice of 1/2 a lemon

• Extra virgin olive oil 1/2 cup

• Salt and pepper to taste

Making of the story

Chapter One

Place all of the dry ingredients into a small food processor. Pulse 3 to 4 times, or until there are no whole cashews left in the bowl.

Chapter Two

Give the sides a good scrape down, then add the wet ingredients. Pulse a few more times until everything is well incorporated. I like to keep mine quite chunky, but if you like yours a little smoother, pulse a few extra times until you're happy with the consistency.

Written with love

PP