PESTO BUTTER

PESTO BUTTER image

Yield 24 cubes

Number Of Ingredients 6

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4 cups fresh sweet basil
3 Tablespoons olive oil
2 heads of garlic separated and peeled: your personal taste may dictate more or less garlic.
1 pound butter (must be butter): melting the butter ahead of time makes use easier and faster.
1 1/2 cups pine nuts
1 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese

Steps:

Measuring out and preparing all of the ingredients makes the process much smoother. Place basil in a food processor fitted with a steel blade. Turn food processor and drizzle olive oil into mix in a steady stream through the open feed tube. Add half of the butter and half of the garlic, blending until smooth. Add the remaining butter and garlic and continue to blend. When the mixture is smooth again, add the pine nuts and Parmesan cheese continuing to blend until the results are smooth and buttery in texture. At this point, pour the pesto butter into plastic ice trays and freeze solid. Once they cubes are frozen solid, pop them out of the tray wrap, individually in saran, seal in vacuum bags and put back in the freezer. I usually save a small amount in the refrigerator (keeps several weeks) for more immediate use. Using the cubes in easy, make some fresh pasta and toss a few cubes 2 to 4 depending on the amount of pasta. Serve as soon as the cubes have melted. In an omelet or on a potato,thaw the cubes ahead of time till liquid but avoid using the microwave since it will cook the pesto butter.