Basil Pesto

Just back from vacation and my basil plant was out of control!  I chopped a ton of it off!  I already have some frozen in olive oil, so decided to make pesto with this latest crop.

At first, I was kind of disappointed - my first time ever making pesto and it seemed runny.  But, I discovered when I pulled it out of the fridge a couple days later it had really thickened up and was just perfect. 

Makes 4 cups

 Basil Pesto

1/4 cup pine nuts

1/4 cup pecans

3 tablespoons chopped garlic

5 cups basil leaves, packed

1 teaspoon kosher salt

1 teaspoon black pepper

1 1/2 cups olive oil

1 cup grated Parmesan cheese

Place the pine nuts, pecans and garlic into a food processor and pulse until coarsely chopped.  Add the basil leaves, salt and pepper.  With the processor running slowly, pour the olive oil through the feed tube and process until everything is pureed.  Add the Parmesan and puree for a minute.  Use right away or store in the refrigerator or freezer with a piece of plastic wrap directly on the pesto, then capped with an airtight lid.  

(Source:  Adapted from Ina Garten)