Pesto: Easy, Delicious and Versatile

Pesto is a type of sauce that originated in the Province of Liguria in Northern Italy. I first got to sample pesto when I visited the region in 2004 and have been loving it ever since. The base of pesto sauce is the herb basil, and so it normally takes on the greenish color of its main ingredient. It is served at room temperature and there is no cooking involved in making pesto.

In the few years that I have been enjoying pesto sauce, I've learned that it's not only easy to make and healthy for you, but it is also very versatile in both variation and use. Here's the recipe for making your own basic pesto sauce followed by suggestions on what you can do with it:

Ingredients:

Fresh basil leaves (about 20 of them)

A couple of cloves of garlic

¼ cup (one small jar) of pine nuts

½ cup grated parmesan cheese

Olive oil (about 2/3 cup)

Salt and pepper, to taste

Directions:

Place the basil leaves, garlic, pine nuts, cheese, salt and pepper into a food processor or blender and add the olive oil as you pulse the mixture into a smooth, combined consistency. Toss the pesto into a pre-cooked box of any type of pasta and serve hot or cold.

Variations on Traditional Pesto:

In the years that I've been making pesto, I've played around with some of the ingredients I add to the mixture for entirely different yet equally delicious variations. Here are a few suggestions:

• - Substitute parsley for basil - Like basil, parsley is a versatile herb and parsley pesto gives the recipe a whole new flavor.

• - Switch up the nuts - Pine nuts can be very expensive and sometimes hard to find, so I often substitute the pine nuts, or pignoli, with other types of nuts, like cashews, almonds, pecans, and even Macadamia nuts.

• - Switch up the cheeses - Any sort of grated cheese can be substituted for the parmesan, like Locatelli, Romano, Asiago or Fontina.

• - Add new ingredients - Adding other ingredients to the pesto mixture can really change up the flavor as well as the color. Some of my favorite ingredients that I add to my pesto mixtures include sun dried tomatoes, roasted red peppers, artichoke hearts and olives. Adding a little chopped onion can also give pesto that delicious combination of onions and garlic that is just so tantalizing.

• - Cream it up - Creamy pesto can be just as flavorful as the original, only with a whole new type of consistency. Add ¼ cup of heavy cream or milk to cream up your pesto.

Suggested uses for pesto:

Pesto is delicious, healthy and versatile. Aside from tossing with a nice plate of hot or cold pasta (and maybe even with a little sweet or hot sausage), pesto can serve a variety of uses:

• - As a condiment - Pesto can be used as a condiment on virtually any type of deli meat sandwich or even a hamburger or hot dog. You can add pesto to steak, chicken, shrimp, or even pork for a whole new flavor experience.

• - As a dipping sauce - Serve small bowls of pesto to be used as a sauce for dipping appetizers, such as chicken wings, twice-baked potatoes, and a whole lot more.

• - On pizza - Just like with pasta, pesto makes a great substitution for traditional tomato sauce on a fresh, homemade pizza. Add some grilled chicken or shrimp, some onions, and even more grated cheese on top for a whole new pizza experience.

• - As a spread - Spread pesto sauce on to some nice, fresh Italian bread or a bagel for a delicious and satisfying breakfast or snack.

• - With eggs - One of my favorite uses for pesto is throwing it into my scrambled egg mixture. Talk about giving eggs a flavorful punch!

So there you have it, a healthy, delicious and versatile sauce with virtually limitless possibilities, and it doesn't involve any cooking. If you've never had pesto and love the aromatic flavor of basil, give pesto a try. You just might love it.

For a great pesto appetizer recipe, check out Onion and Pesto Rounds.