Tasty Tuesday: Cilantro Pesto

Making a pesto is fairly easy, as easy as throwing ingredients into a food processor or blender, but my timorous behavior towards the saucy goodness always kept me at a grocery store’s jarred version of it. 

While visiting my Best Friend in DC last year during our Bell Family Celebration week, Jess lovingly made us a Mediterranean inspired meal to celebrate our second wedding anniversary. We had just spent several hours driving back from Virginia Beach, but Jess managed to whip up a home made pesto of basil and mint to top a rack of lamb. She had all the ingredients on hand, and snipped the fresh herbs from her garden. It was sooo yummy!

Since that day, I vowed to never buy jarred pesto again. And I haven’t. Traditional basil pesto is great for pastas, but this cilantro pesto is my most favorite because we use a lot of traditional Latin flavors in our diet. It is so versatile, too! Mix the pesto with sour cream to make a vibrant condiment, dilute with more oil and a splash of vinegar to make a zesty salad dressing {even a bit of water if you are worried about calorie content}, or just mix into your rice and black beans to give a simple dish a wow factor! Of course, any kind of pesto is great mixed in pasta and complimentary vegggies. Today, I topped it on our salmon before broiling for a simple marinade. This pesto is a serious punch of cilantro and garlic, complete with a spicy kick of red pepper flakes!

Ingredients:
~ Cilantro {I used three bunches for this batch}
~ Garlic {5 cloves. But I love garlic.}
~ Olive Oil {the good stuff}
~ Pine Nuts
~ Lemon and/or Lime juice
~ Parmesan cheese
~ Red Pepper flakes
~ Salt/Pepper

When speaking with Jess about the art of making pesto, she was very adamant about using quality olive oil. I have to agree. I don’t use the good stuff for everything {it’s freaking expensive!}, but this is an occasion that warrants the indulgence.

Directions:
~ Toast the pine nuts in a dry skillet over medium heat {being sure not to burn them}
~ Throw all the ingredients into a food processor {except oil}
~ Process a few seconds to chop all the ingredients up
~ Stream the oil in a steady pour while the machine is running. This will incorporate everything beautifully.
*If you like your pesto smooth, process the cilantro and garlic a few pulses before adding the remainder of the ingredients. I like some texture, so I process everything together.*

And you’re done! Store the pesto in an air tight container and refrigerate for a day to maximize the flavors. Seriously, I can eat this stuff straight from the processor!

There are as many ways to make pesto as there are cooks in this world… that’s the beauty of them! What is your favorite variety?


Happy cooking!