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Fresh Basil RecipesPRESTO PESTO!If your herb garden's like mine, the basil has overtaken! So, here are some fresh basil recipes. I like to chop up the leaves fairly small, lay them out on screens, trays or a cloth to dry away from heat and light. That way they dry with a decent color, not dull gray like basil dries when it's hung up on the stem. Ditto with apple mint and other herbs that lose all their color when dried traditionally. After the herbs dry, store away from heat and light. Rub between your palms no sooner than you are ready to use them and that will release volatile oils directly into your food. You can always freeze herbs, too: just whirl them with a bit of water in the blender or food processor, pour into ice cube trays, freeze hard and then put into baggies. Each cube will be about 2 tablespoons or so.
And remember, except for the Thai and strongly flavored hybrid basils, add basil during the last few minutes of cooking time for an explosion of flavor. The purple
basils,
to my palate, don't hold up under heat, so I like to use them
in uncooked dishes. And keep pinching that basil back. I've told you this before
but
it's worth repeating: once the herb flowers, energy goes into
flowers/seeds
and not into leaf production. Gourmet Betty's Pesto Sauce with Fresh Basil.3 cloves of garlic Place all ingredients in a food processor or blender and process until mixture is smooth. Serve over bed of cooked pasta for a quick and easy dinner. This will yield you enough pesto for a family of 4-6 when serving with pasta. If you have any left over, freeze it and defrost when ready to use. Tips from Rita's kitchen: I like to add a handful of parsley leaves to my pesto, and that helps keep it nice & green, though you will see some darkening of the pesto when it's frozen. If you enjoy these fresh basil recipes, you'll love our fresh tomato basil tart.
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Now the herbs will turn dark, but are SO GOOD in anything cooked.
You'll have a bit of summer during the chill of winter!