Cashew Pesto

Pesto is great, it's one of those ingredients/condiments that goes with just about everything.  I have always appreciated pesto but it was my wife who really introduced me to the possibilities of pesto dishes.  My wife has two food favorites, pesto and feta. If you get both in one dish and she is the happiest little lady ever.  One thing we really like to do is toss some pasta in pesto with a little garlic, Parmesan and some pepper juice. It's quick, easy and delicious.  My wife loves pesto, so naturally I should be making pesto all the time.  Unfortunately, I haven't made pesto in years and I apologize to my beautiful wife for that.  To make up for this I wanted to make the best pesto I could and I think I accomplished this endeavor.  Pesto is quite easy to make, although some recipes are not so easy and call for a ton of ingredients.  My recipe is easy, don't worry.  The most important aspect of pesto is fresh basil. You can only use fresh basil leaves, dry leaves will not work.  I have a basil plant in my kitchen and it was one of the best food related purchases I have ever made.  Fresh spices are the way to go because they make ever dish better.  

When I sat down to write a pesto recipe I decided that I wanted to try something different, something non traditional.  So, instead of pine nuts I made my pesto with cashews and added some Romano cheese in with the Parmesan.  I'm glad I did. My pesto is creamy and smooth, not to dry or thick.  The cashews give the pesto a rich nutty flavor that you don't get with the pine nuts and also add to the creamy texture.  I also used a really good olive oil with pungent fruity notes and a slight peppery  finish.  

Cashew Pesto

1/2 c Cashews

2 c fresh basil leaf (measured whole)

1/3 c Parmesan cheese

1/4 c Romano cheese

2 c Olive oil 

1 tbs Cracked black pepper

Pinch of Kosher sea salt

2 tbs Minced garlic 

In a blender or food mill pulse cashews until they're in small bits.  Add cheese, basil, pepper, salt and garlic.  Pulse until combined then run blender or food mill on a medium setting and drizzle in oil till the pesto is smooth and shinny.   Your pesto should drip off your spoon but still coat the spoon.  If pesto looks to thick add more oil.  If pesto is to thin let it sit for about 30 minutes to let oil rise to the top, then siphon off the desired amount.

If you like pesto I think you will love this recipe, and like I said, it goes great on about everything.  If there's a day I don't have to leave the house or just don't care about my breath I will smear a garlic bagel with cream cheese then top that with a smear of pesto.  Pesto chicken, cheese ravioli with pesto cream sauce, cheese omelette's with a touch of pesto, I even like it on a bit of plain toast.  I was also thinking that a pistachio nut pesto would be good, I'll give it a try and blog it in the future.