Information
Total time: under 15 minutes
Skill level: Easy
Cost: Inexpensive
Yield: About 1 cup
Ingredients
- 1 or 2 plump garlic cloves
- Salt
- 3 tablespoons pine nuts
- 3 cups loosely packed basil leaves, stems removed, leaves washed and dried
- ½ cup freshly grated Parmesan, preferably Parmigiano-Reggiano
- 2 to 3 tablespoons grated pecorino Romano to taste
- 2 tablespoons soft butter, optional
- ½ cup extra virgin olive oil
Directions
By Hand: Smash the garlic with l/2 teaspoon salt and the pine nuts to break them up, then add the basil leaves a handful at a time. (If you’re impatient, you can speed things up by tearing the leaves into smaller pieces first.) Grind them, using a circular motion, until you have a fairly fine paste with very small flecks of leaves. Briefly work in the cheeses and butter, then stir in the olive oil. Taste for salt.
In a Food Processor: Use the same ingredients but in the following order: Process the garlic, salt, and pine nuts until fairly finely chopped, then add the basil and olive oil. When smooth, add the cheeses and butter and process just to combine.
Nutritional Information
Nutrients per serving
88kcal (4%)
50mg (5%)
1mg (1%)
20mcg RAE (1%)
28mg
8mg
2g
0g
0g
1g
3mg (1%)
130mg (5%)
2g (8%)
9g (14%)
0mg (2%)