Basil Pesto

Switching from expensive pine-nuts to other nuts greatly reduces the cost. And what can you say -- Pesto is fantastic. We never add cheese to our pesto!

Because of the high olive oil content, we cannot can this at home. We freeze the jars instead. It actually gives a much fresher taste as the basil does not 'cook' at all.

Ingredients (12 half-pints, frozen)

• 24 cups fresh basil
• ~4 cups olive oil
• 4 cups of nuts (pine nuts, walnuts, almonds...)
• 4 heads of garlic, peeled

Directions

1. Work in small batches: 4 cups basil, olive oil, ½ cup nuts, ~6 garlic cloves.
2. Put garlic in a food processor and process until fairly fine.
3. Pack in basil and pulse, then puree until finely chopped.
4. Add nuts and while continuing to process, drizzle in olive oil until smooth.
5. Scrape out processor into large bowl, cover surface with plastic wrap while continuing to process batches until completed.
6. Fill half-pint jars and freeze the jars.