The flavors in this Traditional Pesto Sauce will make your taste buds dance. So many flavors at one time and much different than traditional red and white sauces. The fresh basil taste really complements so many different options for using the sauce. Try it with pasta, on chicken or shrimp, or as a sandwich condiment or a pizza topping.
Why We Like This Traditional Pesto Sauce
This sauce is amazing! There are several steps, and lots of ingredients, so it makes sense to make several at a time. We make an assembly line and run through them pretty quickly, even making 8-10 batches in about an hour.
Use as much as you like when you open a batch. Some friends like a full batch with the pound of pasta, others use a half batch or so. If you don’t use the full batch, it will last for a week or so in the fridge, and is great to have around as a condiment. You’ll be amazed what this can do to a sandwich! It’s also very good with chicken, shrimp, on homemade pizza or as a topping on sandwiches or burgers. Watch for several recipes as we use these batches over the coming year.
Hints & Tips
In our opinion, each batch of this amazing pesto makes just enough for a pound of pasta. We like to make several batches at the end of summer when basil is plentiful and affordable, and it freezes amazingly well.
The longest part of the process is pulling the basil leaves so you don’t have any stems and washing and drying them to be ready to start.
When you measure the basil, be sure to pack the measuring cup. It really takes a lot of basil for each batch. We grow our own, so have lots available by the end of summer, but you can often find bulk basil at the local farmer’s market for much cheaper than the grocery store!
Pasta water is a necessary component for the pesto to get to the right consistency. We boil a pound of pasta to use for dinner the night we make our pesto. The starch in the water from cooking the pasta helps thin the pesto. Don’t use regular water, it won’t combine correctly. After the work of making pesto, you deserve an amazing dinner!
Once our basil is ready to go, we like to set up an assembly line to get through several batches in a row. Rene’ runs the food processor and I keep the ingredients full for her to use at each step.
We made this video to help you understand the steps!
Wine Pairing
Northern Italian wines are the natural winner with pesto, although it is difficult to pair this big of flavor with any wine. You want to avoid big oaked wines with major tannins, as they are too strong and the flavors will fight instead of complement. Lighter reds or fruity whites are your best bet. I like a nice Chianti or Sangiovese, but a Sauvignon Blanc would work nicely as well. It also depends on how you’re serving the pesto… adding chicken or shrimp softens the pesto flavor and gives you more options into deeper reds.
Traditional Pesto Sauce
Course: Entrees, Other, Pasta, Recipes, SaucesCuisine: ItalianDifficulty: Medium6
servings30
minutes10
minutes385
kcal40
minutesThe flavors in this Traditional Pesto Sauce will make your taste buds dance. So many flavors at one time and much different than traditional red and white sauces. The fresh basil taste really complements so many different options for using the sauce. Try it with pasta, on chicken or shrimp, or as a sandwich condiment or a pizza topping.
Ingredients
- First Step
2 cups Basil (stems removed) tightly packed
2 Garlic Cloves – large and peeled
1 tsp Salt
2 Tbsp Pine Nuts – smashed
1/2 cup Olive Oil
- Second Step
1/2 cup Parmesan Cheese – grated
2 Tbsp Romano Cheese – grated
4 Tbsp Butter – softened to room temperature
- Third Step
2 Tbsp Pasta Water – boiling
Directions
- Prepare pasta per the directions on the package. You need to use the water the pasta cooks in to thin the pesto in the last step
- Place ingredients listed under “First Step” into the mixing bowl of your blender or food processor. Process until smooth, scraping the sides a time or two with a spatula so all ingredients are blended together
- Place “Second Step” ingredients in with the sauce from “First Step” and process briefly, just to mix the cheeses and butter into the sauce
- Add 2 Tbsp of boiling pasta water and pulse for 2 seconds. If the sauce is too thick, add an additional tablespoon and pulse again. The sauce is ready to eat or freeze