Annabel's Pantry - Spring Pesto

The original pesto comes from Italy and is traditionally made using fresh basil, garlic, salt and olive oil crushed and blended together with a mortar and pestle. Today there are hundreds of variations.

Having pesto handy in the fridge means you can pull it out anytime and toss with pasta, noodles, through salads, or use to top meat or seafood before baking or barbecuing, or to liven up soups or baked potato. Simply serve with bread or crostini, or as a dip for blanched spring vegetables such as snow peas or asparagus – one of the healthiest ways to snack.

Home-made pesto, packed full of fresh herbs, garlic and nuts, is a great way to add extra nutrition and boost flavour in your meals.

Garlic improves the body’s circulation, lowers blood pressure and increases resistance to bacterial, fungal and viral infections. These beneficial effects have been traced to the sulphur compound Allicin. This compound is released when garlic is crushed but it is destroyed on cooking. For this reason garlic is most potent when it is raw and crushed – just like it is in pesto.

Make sure you use New Zealand garlic as it has a much better flavour than Chinese garlic and is free of chemical additives.

Herb gardens are one of the best ways to save money and to ensure that you always have fresh herbs on hand to make pesto or to flavour salads and other dishes. The different herbs vary in the vitamins and minerals they contain but in general all fresh herbs, such as parsley, basil, coriander, dill and mint are high in vitamin C and potassium. Some herbs are also said to have beneficial digestive properties, and have been used for treatment of intestinal problems.

The nuts and olive oil in pesto provide an abundance of heart-healthy unsaturated fats and antioxidants but if you need shed some of that winter comfort weight, try the low-fat Skinny Pesto recipe below.

Tips

1. Pesto should be made with fresh herbs.
2. Pesto will keep in the fridge for 1-2 weeks, but it can also be frozen in small containers.
3. To prevent pesto from drying out, place in a jar and cover surface with a layer of olive oil.

ASIAN PESTO

Prep	5 minutes
Makes	2 cups

1 cup fresh coriander, tightly packed
1 cup fresh mint, tightly packed
1 cup extra virgin olive
1 tsp salt
1 small hot red chilli
finely grated zest of 2 limes
1 cup cashews, roasted

Place coriander and mint in a sieve and pour over boiling water to wilt then place under cold running water to cool. Drain and purée in a food processor with the oil, salt, chilli, lime zest and roasted cashews. Mix until smooth.

BASIL PESTO

Prep	5 minutes
Makes	1½ cups

2 cups fresh basil leaves, tightly packed
2 large cloves garlic, crushed
¾ cup extra virgin olive
¼ cup grated parmesan
½ tsp salt and grinds black pepper
Optional: ¼ cup pine nuts or walnuts, toasted

Purée all ingredients together in a food processor until smooth. Or pound with a mortar and pestle, adding oil once the mixture forms a fine paste.

BROAD BEAN PESTO

This stunning pesto is based on a recipe from a lovely book called Flavours of the Riviera by Coleman Andrews. Serve as a dip or toss through cooked pasta (thinned with a little pasta cooking water) or spoon over potato with diced bacon.

Prep	5 minutes
Cook	2 minutes for fresh beans
Makes	About 2 cups

1½-2 cups shelled broad beans, fresh or frozen
2 garlic cloves, minced
12 fresh mint leaves, finely chopped
4 anchovy fillets
4 heaped tbsp finely grated parmesan
¼ cup extra virgin olive oil

If broad beans are fresh, boil them for 2 minutes then drain. If using frozen broad beans, pour over boiling water and leave until cool enough to handle. Slip off greyish outer skins by grasping each bean by its grooved end and squeezing gently. Discard skins. Place beans and all other ingredients in a food processor and purée to a paste. Pesto will keep for about 1 week in the fridge

CHILLI CORIANDER PESTO

Prep	5 minutes
Makes	1 cup

1 large bunch of fresh coriander, including the roots
2 cloves garlic
2 small chillies, deseeded and pith removed
½ tsp salt
½ tsp finely grated lemon rind (no pith)
¼ cup peanuts, roasted
½ cup salad oil

Wash the coriander and place in a heatproof bowl and pour over boiling water to cover. Drain at once. Place in a blender with garlic, chillies, salt, lemon rind, roasted peanuts and salad oil. Purée together until mixture forms a smooth paste.

SKINNY PESTO

Prep	5 minutes
Makes	1½ cups

1 bunch fresh watercress or rocket, any coarse stems removed
1 bunch fresh parsley
2 cloves garlic
2 tbsp oil
2 tbsp water
salt and pepper
2 tbsp parmesan cheese

Place all ingredients in a blender and purée together until mixture forms a smooth paste.