One of my favorite herbs has got to be this African Blue Basil I’m using in this week’s recipe. I am absolutely obsessed with these big beautiful plants. I clone them constantly hoping to have a half dozen of them around my house (and to give away about a half dozen more).
If you’ve never made pesto before, you should totally start. It’s so simple and easy and incredibly flavorful. Plus, it’s one of those meal pieces that can totally be riffed off of. This recipe is just a very basic suggestion. Play around with the spices, the ratios, and even replace some of the other ingredients. It doesn’t have to be exact. That’s the fun thing about cooking.
This episode also includes a little bonus because I couldn’t not try the pesto once it was done. I think if you ever make this, you’ll smell why it must be tasted immediately. I threw together a little pasta side dish at the end to show you just how easy it is to use the pesto as part of a meal. With a salad and some seasoned chicken and you’re just a dessert away from a tasty meal.
Ingredients
- 1/2 cup infused olive oil
- 1 1/2 cups of fresh basil
- 1/4 cup freshly grated parmigiano or romano
- 1/4 cup pine nuts or almonds
- 1-2 cloves of garlic
- Salt and Pepper to taste
Tools
- Measuring cup
- Food processor
- Airtight container for storage
- Cheese grater
Method
- Prepare infused olive oil by decarbing your cannabis and then simmering your olive oil and cannabis in a water bath for 1-3 hours. Then strain out cannabis.
- Remove stems from basil then add all ingredients to a food processor and let run until all the ingredients are broken up and the pesto looks pretty smooth.
To make the pasta as shown in this episode you’ll need a few more ingredients and tools.
Ingredients for Pasta for 1 serving
- Pasta
- 1 tablespoon of butter (you can use cannabutter)
- Freshly grated parmigiano
Tools for Pasta
- Pot
- Pasta strainer
- Large spoon for mixing
Method:
- Cook pasta to instructions.
- Drain but reserve 1 tablespoon of the pasta water and return cooked pasta to the pot.
- Leave burner heat on low.
- Add 2 heaping tablespoons of pesto, 1 tablespoon of butter to pasta and stir and toss until butter is melted and all the pasta is coated completely.
- Serve with some parmigiana on top.
