Origin
Pesto, as it is known today (and specifically known as pesto alla genovese,) originated in Genoa, the capital of Liguria, Italy.
The word pesto comes from the past participle of, “to pound,” or, “to crush,” in Genoese, pesta. This shares the same latin origin of pestle from mortar and pestle which is the traditional way of making pesto (and the method I used.)
Pesto has 2 possible predecessors moretum from Ancient Rome and agliata from the Middle ages in Liguria. Both are paste-like sauces made by crushing and mixing their ingredients. The introduction of basil as the show stopper wasn't until 1863 when Giovanni Battista Ratto published his book “La Cuciniera Genovese.”
Ingredients
all link on ingredients are to the ingredient spotlight posts of this blog
2 cloves garlic
1 large pinch coarse salt
1 bunch Basil (28g or so)
2 tbsp pine nuts
¼ cup** freshly grated Parmesan (or other hard cheese)
¼ cup extra virgin olive oil
** measuring grated Parmesan cheese by volume is a little tricky, like flour it holds a lot of air. If you have a scale I recommend using it (I need to get myself a new one) and I would measure about an ounce of cheese for this recipe according to the recipes I worked off of for this.
Tools
Mortar and pestle (a food processor can be used as well)
Measuring cups/spoons
Directions
If you haven't already made sure your Parmesan is grated. Before you begin processing you wil also want to take the leaves from the stems of your basil and remove the skins from your garlic cloves.
To begin, crush the garlic in the mortar along with a generous pinch of coarse salt. The salt will add an abrasiveness that will help break down the garlic which is why I have specified a coarse salt. Do this until the garlic has totally become a paste (the same way we did with toum.)
Next add in your basil leaves a good handful at a time. For this amount I split the basil into about three handfuls. Use the pestle to crush the basil leaves into your garlic paste until they reach the desired texture then add the next handful and repeat until all of the basil has been incorporated.
**
witchy tip** every time you add a new handful, or new ingredient for that matter, restate your intentions
Once your garlic and basil resemble a homogeneous paste it's time to move onto the pine nuts. You should be able to add them all at the same time. Keep crushing until they too become a part of the
paste indistinguishable from the other ingredients.
The next ingredient to add in is the cheese. You
guessed it, add in the cheese in handfuls and slowly work to incorporate each handful before the next one. We finally see the colour changing here and it looks like what we know pesto to look like. A vibrant light green paste. But it is very thick so we must add one more important ingredient…
… the oil. Again, follow the pattern. Add your oil in small amounts, i suggest a tablespoon at a time. Make sure the oil is totally incorporated before adding the next tablespoon. If you get to a point where you can't incorporate anymore don't feel the need to add the rest of the measure.
Pesto, as it is known today (and specifically known as pesto alla genovese,) originated in Genoa, the capital of Liguria, Italy.
The word pesto comes from the past participle of, “to pound,” or, “to crush,” in Genoese, pesta. This shares the same latin origin of pestle from mortar and pestle which is the traditional way of making pesto (and the method I used.)
Pesto has 2 possible predecessors moretum from Ancient Rome and agliata from the Middle ages in Liguria. Both are paste-like sauces made by crushing and mixing their ingredients. The introduction of basil as the show stopper wasn't until 1863 when Giovanni Battista Ratto published his book “La Cuciniera Genovese.”
Ingredients
all link on ingredients are to the ingredient spotlight posts of this blog
2 cloves garlic
1 large pinch coarse salt
1 bunch Basil (28g or so)
2 tbsp pine nuts
¼ cup** freshly grated Parmesan (or other hard cheese)
¼ cup extra virgin olive oil
** measuring grated Parmesan cheese by volume is a little tricky, like flour it holds a lot of air. If you have a scale I recommend using it (I need to get myself a new one) and I would measure about an ounce of cheese for this recipe according to the recipes I worked off of for this.
Tools
Mortar and pestle (a food processor can be used as well)
Measuring cups/spoons
Directions
If you haven't already made sure your Parmesan is grated. Before you begin processing you wil also want to take the leaves from the stems of your basil and remove the skins from your garlic cloves.
To begin, crush the garlic in the mortar along with a generous pinch of coarse salt. The salt will add an abrasiveness that will help break down the garlic which is why I have specified a coarse salt. Do this until the garlic has totally become a paste (the same way we did with toum.)
Next add in your basil leaves a good handful at a time. For this amount I split the basil into about three handfuls. Use the pestle to crush the basil leaves into your garlic paste until they reach the desired texture then add the next handful and repeat until all of the basil has been incorporated. **
witchy tip** every time you add a new handful, or new ingredient for that matter, restate your intentionsOnce your garlic and basil resemble a homogeneous paste it's time to move onto the pine nuts. You should be able to add them all at the same time. Keep crushing until they too become a part of the
paste indistinguishable from the other ingredients. The next ingredient to add in is the cheese. You
guessed it, add in the cheese in handfuls and slowly work to incorporate each handful before the next one. We finally see the colour changing here and it looks like what we know pesto to look like. A vibrant light green paste. But it is very thick so we must add one more important ingredient…
… the oil. Again, follow the pattern. Add your oil in small amounts, i suggest a tablespoon at a time. Make sure the oil is totally incorporated before adding the next tablespoon. If you get to a point where you can't incorporate anymore don't feel the need to add the rest of the measure. And there you have it! Your very own Pesto alla Genovese. Of course there are many substitutions that can be made and you can play around with the ratios of ingredients as well but this is the simple traditional style of pesto.
If you want to try something a little different, try a different nut or herb, you can even try an herbal blend like using basil and marjoram together! Let me know if you try this recipe and especially if you decide to experiment!
Serving
My favourite way to serve pesto is on gnocchi. Most traditionally it is served on hot pasta for dinner but I also love it as the sauce choice for cold pasta salad. It also gives a great pick me up to a sandwich especially a ham and Swiss. If you are serving a group try it as part of your canapes or as part of a stuffed cherry tomato appetizer. (Recipes to follow perhaps? Let me know if you're interested!) It really is versatile. Get funky with it and let me know what kind of serving experiments you come up with, good and bad!
Short and Gritty
Ingredients
2 cloves garlic
1 large pinch coarse salt
1 bunch Basil (28g or so)
2 tbsp pine nuts
¼ cup** freshly grated Parmesan (or other hard cheese)
¼ cup extra virgin olive oil
** measuring grated Parmesan cheese by volume is a little tricky, like flour it holds a lot of air. If you have a scale I recommend using it (I need to get myself a new one) and I would measure about an ounce of cheese for this recipe according to the recipes I worked off of for this.
Tools
Mortar and pestle (a food processor can be used as well)
Measuring cups/spoons
Directions
1. crush garlic and salt in mortar
2. add and crush basil
3. add and crush pine nuts
4. add and crush cheese
5. add and mix oil
6. serve
My favourite way to serve pesto is on gnocchi. Most traditionally it is served on hot pasta for dinner but I also love it as the sauce choice for cold pasta salad. It also gives a great pick me up to a sandwich especially a ham and Swiss. If you are serving a group try it as part of your canapes or as part of a stuffed cherry tomato appetizer. (Recipes to follow perhaps? Let me know if you're interested!) It really is versatile. Get funky with it and let me know what kind of serving experiments you come up with, good and bad!
Short and Gritty
Ingredients
2 cloves garlic
1 large pinch coarse salt
1 bunch Basil (28g or so)
2 tbsp pine nuts
¼ cup** freshly grated Parmesan (or other hard cheese)
¼ cup extra virgin olive oil
** measuring grated Parmesan cheese by volume is a little tricky, like flour it holds a lot of air. If you have a scale I recommend using it (I need to get myself a new one) and I would measure about an ounce of cheese for this recipe according to the recipes I worked off of for this.
Tools
Mortar and pestle (a food processor can be used as well)
Measuring cups/spoons
Directions
1. crush garlic and salt in mortar
2. add and crush basil
3. add and crush pine nuts
4. add and crush cheese
5. add and mix oil
6. serve
No comments:
Post a Comment