I have been in bed for nearly 5 days due to a pinched nerve… It’s been miserable! Besides the fact that it’s ridiculously painful, I’ve also been subjected to eat what my husband makes me  store roasted chicken, pizza and salad with no dressing… He likes his food dry, he’s English! To make matters worse, he pulled his back 2 days ago and has also been suffering! The sight of us getting out of bed in the morning, walking around or doing anything for that matter is hilarious. Talk about old married couple, can anyone see my dentures?

After a week of eating processed non-sense, we were both very happy that I managed to conjure something up! PESTO!

Three of my favorite ingredients; basil, garlic and pine nuts. oh! and olive oil and Parmigian…

To make pesto the way it should be and the good ol’ Italian way is to to make sure no food processor is in sight! Don’t get me wrong, I’m not against using food processors but in this case if you use it you will be committing a unforgivable sin! Besides you’ll be cutting yourself short because your pesto is not going to taste sooooo great! why? the texture will turn out pasty and you won’t have definition between the ingredients, the flavors won’t POP as they should.

So grab your mortar and pestle and get ready to grind! Did you know that the word “pesto” originates from the word “pestle”…. there you go, so you can’t substitute the pestle with a food processor otherwise you won’t legitimately get pesto! If your like me and like to know the origin of what you eat then I’ve left you a short paragraph of “pesto history” at the end. For now your ingredients will be:

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Goat Cheese Tortellini A La Battuto D’aglio

• 3 large garlic cloves for those true garlic lovers, 2 for the amateurs- crushed and peeled, remove inner green sprouts as they add bitterness
• Pinch of Salt
• 1 handful/ 25g of pine nuts (Baskinta pine cones and a hammer, memories of childhood)
• 1 handful/ 25g almonds
• 1 handful/25g pistachios
• 1 cup basil- or small to medium sized leaves preferred, large leaves will do however. Make sure its packed.
• 1/2 cup of mint leaves. packed
• 1 tablespoon butter, melted
• Olive oil
• 2 tablespoon of Parmigiano-Reggiano ( only if pesto is being consumed right away)
• 300g fresh goat cheese tortellini, cooked according to packet instructions
• 250g blanched green beans
• 2 medium sized portobellos,peeled, thinly sliced and sauteed
• 2 green onions- thinly chopped

In your mortar, add the garlic and the salt and start pounding until you reach a pureed consistency. Next slowly add your pine nuts, pistachios and almonds and pound until all fine. Add few basil leaves and mint leaves and pound in a circular motion, continue till all basil and mint leaves utilized. Add melted butter and whip well with a fork. Add cheese and whip. add olive oil to reach consistency desired and whip. I like my pesto quite thick and will adjust it once mixed with the pasta. Add the pesto, mushrooms, portobellos and green beans, put the lid back on the pot and shake well. Serve with green onions and a bit more of pine nuts if you wish!

Tips: Left over pesto… no worries, mix it together with some russet potatoes or chicken tenders and bake. Pesto can also be used atop fish, vegetables and as a spread on breads and sandwiches!

Variations: use either one or in combination hazelnuts, almonds, pistachios. You may also roast the nuts first.

The History of Pesto:
Pesto is believed to originate from Liguria, the north west coast of Italy and to this day considered the best place to grow basil (small leafed basil). In the old times,  Pesto (omit cheese) was preserved in oil and sent out with the men to sea for months or years at a time. The ancient method of pesto preparation is with the marble mortar and wooden pestle, still considered the best method of preparation. A very commonly mentioned phrase by restaurateurs, chefs and foodies alike is that “Pesto without garlic is not pesto.” A good pesto is well rounded and the bite should come from garlic.

Moving on to other ingredients, if you can’t find pine nuts then you may use walnuts.