Michael Daniel

Basil Pesto

Preparation info
  • Makes about

    225 g

    • Difficulty

      Easy

Appears in
The Gate Vegetarian Cookbook: Where Asia meets the Mediterranean
The Gate Vegetarian Cookbook

By Adrian Daniel and Michael Daniel

Published 2004

  • About

We don’t add Parmesan to pestos. This way we keep vegans happy and the pestos can be used with a wider range of dishes. Of course, you can add grated Parmesan – a good handful should do it. When we add the nuts we keep them coarse.

Ingredients

  • large bunch of basil leaves
  • juice of 1 lemon
  • 1 fat garlic clove, finely chopped

Method

  1. Using a mortar and pestle or food processor, blend the basil, lemon juice and garlic with the olive oil, starting with as little oil as possible to keep the herb’s colour. Once you have a smoothish paste you can add the rest.
  2. Add the toasted pine nuts and blend briefly to a lumpy purée. Season with salt to taste. Store in the fridge for up to a month.