Pesto made with Basil and Spinach Leaves

Green Delight: Crafting the Perfect Basil and Spinach Pesto

Essential Ingredients: Basil and Spinach

Pesto is a paste consisting of crushed garlic, pine nuts, coarse salt, basil leaves, and hard cheese such as Parmesan or pecorino sardo, all blended with olive oil. It originated in Genoa, the capital city of Liguria, Italy.

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A perfect pesto recipe demands 2 cups of fresh basil leaves and a cup of baby spinach. This combination ensures the pesto will have a lively flavor and a vibrant green hue. To achieve this culinary delight, choosing the freshest leaves is imperative. Only the finest ingredients lead to a pesto that’s both aromatic and visually appealing, embodying the essence of gourmet cooking within Italian cuisine.

Blending Basics: Crafting Your Pesto

Exploring New Horizons with Basil and Spinach Pesto

You can effortlessly elevate ordinary dishes to gourmet levels with this basil and spinach pesto.

• Enrich baked potatoes by tossing them with this flavorful pesto, introducing a novel twist to a classic comfort food.
• Transform crackers or toasted slices of bread into sophisticated snacks by spreading them with pesto, showcasing its versatility beyond mere pasta accompaniment.

Encouraged by the unique blend of basil leaves, spinach leaves, and Reggiano Parmesan cheese, enhanced by the rich taste of extra virgin olive oil and the crunch of pine nuts, one should feel inspired to experiment and introduce this pesto into various culinary creations.

A Fresh Take on Tradition: Basil and Spinach Pesto Magic

This basil and spinach pesto recipe strikes a delightful balance between preserving the essence of Italian cuisine and introducing an innovative twist. Key ingredients like Reggiano Parmesan cheese, extra virgin olive oil, pine nuts, and the unique addition of spinach with basil leaves elevate this dish beyond the traditional. This combination not only enhances the nutritional value but also the flavor profile, making it a standout in vegetarian recipes and healthy sauces.

Its versatility doesn’t end with pasta. Creative minds have discovered its charm in transforming baked potatoes, enlivening crackers, and adding a gourmet touch to toasted slices of bread. This pesto has proven to be more than a quick sauce; it is a culinary chameleon, ready to enhance any meal it accompanies.

The encouragement to embrace DIY pesto cultivation taps into the joy of cooking at home. It beckons food enthusiasts to venture beyond their comfort zones, reimagining pesto’s role in their culinary creations. As a bridge between gourmet cooking and everyday meals, this recipe allows for exploration, ensuring that each dish can be a discovery of new tastes and traditions.

Pesto made with Basil and Spinach Leaves

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Experience the Freshness: Pesto made with Fresh Basil and Spinach Leaves, A Taste Adventure Awaits.

• Author: EsmeSalon
• Prep Time: 15 minutes
• Cook Time: 0 minutes
• Total Time: 15 minutes
• Yield: 12 servings depending on size 1x
• Category: Everyday Cooking
• Method: Easy
• Cuisine: Italian

Ingredients

Units USM Scale 1x2x3x

• 2 cups stuffed with packed fresh basil leaves
• 1 cup stuffed with baby spinach leaves.
• 1/2 cup freshly grated Reggiano Parmesan cheese
• 1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil
• 1/3 cup pine nuts
• 1 tablespoon minced cloves garlic, do not be tempted to add more as it will result in a bitter taste
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/8 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

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Instructions

1. Wash, then dry and shred the basil leaves and place them together with the pine nuts into the 500ml base of your Ninja food processor and pulse several times.
2. Mix the minced garlic with the Reggiano Parmesan cheese and whirl it around a few times.
3. Remember to scrape down the sides of the food processor with a rubber spatula.
4. Slowly add the olive oil or, if you have a funnel on your processor, in a small stream while it’s still running), as it will help to emulsify the mixture and keep the olive oil from separating.
5. As my Ninja does not have a funnel, I added no more than ¼ at a time, as all good! Occasionally, stop to scrape down the sides of the food processor.
6. Add salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste.

Toss with pasta for a quick sauce, dollop over baked potatoes, or spread onto crackers or toasted slices of bread.

Equipment

Silicone Spatula Turner Set of 3

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Food Processing Blender

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Notes

Adapted from Internet recipe, prepared, tried, and tested by Esme Slabs from The Recipe Hunter: Tried and Tested Recipes from Home Chefs; SA Tasty Recipes – Saffas Daily Recipes and EsmeSalon Homemade Recipes 

Nutrition

• Serving Size: 12
• Calories: 122
• Sugar: 0.2 g
• Sodium: 107.3 mg
• Fat: 12.8 g
• Saturated Fat: 2.1 g
• Trans Fat: 0 g
• Carbohydrates: 1 g
• Fiber: 0.3 g
• Protein: 2 g
• Cholesterol: 2.4 mg

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The nutrition facts provided are automatically calculated. They might change depending on the specific ingredients you use or any adjustments you make to the recipe. If these numbers are significant to you, it’s best to calculate them yourself.

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