Jovial Tips for Better Pesto

Summer is pesto season and we’d like to share a few jovial tips that we learned in Italy for making better pesto.

1. If you have basil in your garden, keep it trimmed so the plant will produce an abundance of fresh and tender leaves. Do not be afraid to trim, because the more you trim, the more your plant will produce.
2. To trim your plant, cut from the top so you can keep the plant bushy, rather than tall. Below the tips, you will find side shoots. You should trim just above the pair of leaves. Two new stems will grown from there. If you are trimming frequently, you will have lots of fresh basil on your hands. Use only the small tender leaves for pesto and the large tougher leaves for cooking. You can add fresh basil to tomato sauce, omelets, salads, soups, risotto and stir-fried dishes.

3. To maintain the best flavor and most delicate leaves, you will need to keep a close eye on your plant to stop it from bolting in hot weather. When you see a flower bud, trim the tip off right away.

4. You will need to harvest 3 to 5 cups of packed leaves to make from ½ to 1 cup of pesto. Once you cut the tips off, snip away the stems from the leaves. The stems have a bitter flavor and will not be ground as finely as the leaves. You can discard the stems by pressing right at the bottom of the leaves with your fingernail.

5. Oil and water do not mix, so it is important to dry the basil completely after washing. Don’t rinse the basil, wash the leaves in a salad spinner and dry them carefully. Otherwise, you will find that the pesto darkens quickly.

6. To preserve your pesto, always top it off with fresh oil. This will create a barrier to air and permit you to store the pesto in the refrigerator for up to two weeks. Since pesto contains plenty of extra virgin olive oil, it will only be as good as the oil you use to prepare it. Jovial’s Reserve Blend Organic Extra Virgin olive oil has a mild, yet fruity flavor and will make extra special pesto.

Fresh Basil Pesto

• 5 cups of packed basil leaves, stems and flowers discarded
• 2 cloves of fresh garlic, peeled and chopped
• 1 tablespoon pine nuts or walnuts (optional)
• ¼ teaspoon sea salt
• ½ cup of jovial extra virgin olive oil
• ½ cup of grated Pecorino Romano cheese
• ¼ cup of grated Parmigiano Reggiano cheese

Place the basil in a food processor. Add garlic, nuts, and salt. Pulse to chop the leaves. With the motor running, slowly pour the oil into the bowl through the feed tube and process until as fine as possible. Scrape the sides of the bowl with a spatula. Add the cheeses and pulse a few times to combine. (If you like a creamier pesto, you may also add a few tablespoons of butter along with the oil.)

Store in a sealed glass container, topped off with extra virgin olive oil.

When preparing pasta, add the desired amount of pesto to the serving bowl. When the pasta is halfway through the cooking time, add a few tablespoons of the hot cooking water  to the bowl to warm and thin the pesto before mixing in the pasta.