How to Make and Freeze Pesto: CSA Tuesdays

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Fall is quickly approaching and I can totally tell because of the change in our vegetables in our CSA.   This week in our share we received a box of potatoes, a box of tomatoes, a head of lettuce, a bulb of garlic, green onions, 4 onions, a ton of basil, and swiss chard.   The lettuce will be gone soon in a salad because it’s seriously the best lettuce.   The garlic and tomatoes are going to be used to make homemade marinara sauce.  The onions pretty much go into everything we eat, and I’ll stir fry the swiss chard with some other vegetables and tofu.

How to freeze pesto!

Then there is the basil.  I still had the basil leftover from last week and I have a ton growing in the yard.   I love basil but the problem is my husband does not so I rarely eat it in anything.   Of course the most traditional thing to make with basil is pesto, so I went ahead and made a batch of my easy pesto and then I froze it so I can use it whenever I want.

CSA:  Fresh made pesto

The pesto is so easy to make.   All you do is throw everything in the food processor, add olive oil, and process until smooth.  Freezing pesto is super easy as well.   I like to put the pesto in an ice cube tray (the one I use for sauces and herbs), drizzle a few drops of olive oil on top, and freeze for 4 hours.   After freezing pop the pesto cubes out, place in a freezer safe baggie, put a date on the baggie, and freeze for later use.

When ready to use the pesto simple take a few cubes out and heat with pasta.   You can also add the cubes to another sauce for additional flavor.   Frozen pesto will stay fresh in the freezer for up to 9 months.

How to Make and Freeze Pesto

Yield: 2 cups
Prep Time: 5 minutes
Total Time: 5 minutes

Ingredients

  • 3 garlic cloves
  • 2 c. fresh basil leaves
  • 1/2 c. fresh oregano or parsley (I like oregano)
  • 1/3 c. grated Parmesan cheese
  • 1/3 c. pine nuts
  • 1 teaspoon sea salt
  • 1-2 teaspoons black pepper
  • 1/2 c. olive oil

Instructions

  1. Put all of the ingredients except for the olive oil in a food processor. Process until smooth.
  2. While running the food processor, drizzle in the olive oil a bit at a time, checking the consistency of the pesto. Continue adding in the olive oil until it's combined and the pesto is smooth and bright green.

Notes

A Hezzi-D Original Recipe

Fresh made pesto from our CSA

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