Extra Virgin Olive Oil Day: Pesto Genovese

September 29th is Extra Virgin Olive Oil Day & we’re celebrating with a perennial favorite, Pesto Genovese! Autumn is officially here yet there are still vestiges of summer with abundant pots of fresh basil & parsley on the patio. We modified the esteemed Marcella Hazan’s recipe using Villa Gabriella Organic Extra Virgin Olive Oil for an easy & delicious pasta sauce. Pesto originates from the northwestern port city of Genoa in the Liguria region & the Italian verb “pestare” is to pound or crush. Ancient Romans prepared the sauce with a marble mortar & wooden pestle using fresh basil, garlic, olive oil, parsley, pine nuts & sheep’s milk cheese. Pounding & crushing in a circular motion the thick paste topped bread, meat, vegetables & of course pasta. Serves 6. 

Easy Ingredients: 

  1. 1/3 cup Villa Gabriella Organic Extra Virgin Olive Oil, plus more to taste
  2. 1 1/2 cups fresh basil leaves
  3. ½ cup of fresh parsley leaves
  4. 2 tablespoons fresh pine nuts, toasted
  5. 2 tablespoons parmesan cheese, grated or Pecorino Romano
  6. 1-2 cloves fresh garlic
  7. 1 teaspoon fresh lemon juice
  8. 1 teaspoon sea salt
  9. 1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes

Simple Directions:

  1. Combine basil leaves, parsley, pine nuts & garlic in a blender or food processor
  2. Pulse a few times to roughly chop ingredients
  3. Add cheese, lemon juice, sea salt & red pepper flakes
  4. Blend for a 2-minutes or until ingredients are thoroughly mixed
  5. Run the blender or food processor while slowly pouring in olive oil
  6. Mix the ingredients
  7. Add more oil if desired
  8. Serve & enjoy warm or at room temperature over dry or fresh pasta
  9. Store in a covered container up to 1 week in the refrigerator
  10. Freeze by adding a layer of olive oil on the surface before sealing the container

Tried, Tasted & True!

At Villa Gabriella Organic our team tries & tastes every recipe we feature.  While we love to share our family recipes & those of talented home cooks & chefs, sometimes we adapt them so they are even easier to make. As with our products, our goal is for you to have a healthy & delicious experience using Villa Gabriella recipes. So try them out in your kitchen, feel free to tweak them & please tell us what you think. We welcome your comments & feedback!

Grazie da Team VILLA GABRIELLA

clientservice@villagabriellallc.com

Source: Essentials of Classic Italian Cooking Marcella Hazan - Ballantine Books

RecipesMorgan ShepardComment