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7/2/09

How To Make Pesto Without Basil?

parsley almond pesto Who said pesto has to be made from basil, pine nuts and Parmesan? Well, probably some amazing Italian chefs.

By now, however, you know that I don't follow recipes and don't adhere to rules when it comes to things happening in my kitchen...the rest of my life is another story.

Last week I had a bunch of parsley sitting in my refrigerator, some Parmesan cheese left from testing a recipe for Robyn and some sliced almonds left from the Bakewell Tart.

I decided to add all these ingredients to my food processor and make Parsley, Almond & Parmesan Pesto.

Unlike the regular pesto, I did not add garlic to mine; instead, I increased the flavor profile by adding lemon juice.





parsley almond pestoparsley almond pesto

Ingredients
1/3 cup sliced almonds
1/3 cup Parmesan cheese
1 hand-full Italian Parsley
juice of 1/2 lemon
1/4 cup olive oil
salt & pepper to taste

Directions
1. In a food processor combine the first four ingredients. Then slowly start pouring olive oil and incorporating it into the rest of the ingredients.
2. Season with salt & pepper.

You can add this pesto to pasta, gnocchi, use it on sandwiches, or as a dressing for potato salad.

It is also really great spread on slices of baguette, topped with roasted red pepper and blue cheese and then broiled for a few minutes. I actually made this (together with slices of baguette topped with fresh figs and blue cheese), but the photos turned out horrific, so you'll just have to trust me on that!

If I don't "see" you before this weekend, have a great 4th of July!

14 comments:

Shelby said...

Looks great!

Sara said...

I love to change up pesto. One of my favorite variations is to use cooked peas instead of basil. The sauce is slightly sweet.

Delicious Dishings said...

Hope you have a happy 4th too!

Sounds like an interesting pesto. I love basil and garlic, but maybe I can convince myself to branch out next time!

Sophie said...

I think the photos look delicious! It looks just like pesto to me :). I'm allergic to pine nuts so I'm gonna try using almonds when I get around to making pesto from scratch :).

Simones Kitchen said...

Well it certainly looks every bit as good as any regular pesto!

Sasha said...

I make parsley pesto all the time, too, since I don't keep basil around that much. Instead of almonds I use walnuts, though. : ]

♥peachkins♥ said...

it looks yummy! that's really a brilliant idea..

Mary Bergfeld said...

Olga, I love the color of your basil-less pesto. I guess it can be anything you want it to be. I did one a few years back with arugula and hazelnute. It was OK. I suspect yours is better than OK. Have a wonderful holiday.

foodcreate said...

Looks so Tasty great Pesto!

Thanks for sharing!


Have a great Fourth of July!

http://foodcreate.com

Leslie said...

what a yummy twist on the classic pesto

chow and chatter said...

love your blog, this looks great will follow along Rebecca

Unknown said...

I bet this is good. For the Sophia Loren pasta I make (its her recipe) the base for the pesto is parsley too. Its my favourite pasta dish ever.

Creative Classroom Core said...

What a tasty and clever twist :)

BlueToYou said...

love the idea! very creative.