On days like today when the baby has kept me up all night I am so thankful for all the healthy food I “put by” last fall. Lunch is a cinch with bags of frozen Pesto around. I can even enlist Proeun’s help. While I try to recover the Pesto thaws and then it is as simple as cooking pasta. Here’s how we did it.

Pesto

blend walnuts and garlic together to make course grind. Add basil leaves. Remove center piece from blender lid or leave lid off and slowly drizzle in olive oil to make smooth paste. Stir in salt to taste.

Originally I had more solid numbers I was working with but when you are trying to preserve several plants worth of pesto in a afternoon measurements just slow you down. I would make a batch, put it in quart size freezer bags and move on to the next one. Since they were all the same thing I didn’t even take the time to wash the blender in between. Working this way you can put away about 5 batches in less then half hour. That’s a lot of meals for the winter. Just make sure to seal the bags as soon as you add the pesto as it tends to discolor quickly. Freeze right away.

My only problem is I love to eat my pesto with a thick slice of fresh tomato on the top. I haven’t had a fresh tomato in such a long time.