Recipe of the months
*Aljezur Basil & Almond Pesto*
We are happy sharing some of the famous recipes of Olivia’s Localicious Kitchen as one of our returning monthly highlights.
Starting with a homemade yummy basil and almond pesto. Using local and regional products only. Come back for more soon.
This pesto goes really well with pasta, gluten free crackers, oven roasted veg, slices of fresh (local) tomatoes and many other dishes snacks.
Ingredients
- 100g Basil leaves
- 60g Portugese Almonds
- 50g strong flavoured local goats and/or sheeps hard cheese
- 2-3 medium cloves of garlic
- 1/2 teaspoon of Sea Salt (or to taste)
- 1/3-1/2 teaspoon of crushed or ground black pepper (or to taste)
- 150ml extra virgin Olive oil
Instructions
1) wash Basil leaves and dry with a Salad spinner or tea towel
2) grind Almonds in a good blender (Thermomix/Vitamix/Nutribullet or similar) until you have a coarse flour
3) cut cheese into 4-6 pieces and add to the almonds, blend for another 5-10 seconds (not too small)
4) add the basil leaves 2-3 garlic cloves, the salt and pepper seasoning and the ev olive oil
5) blend until everything is small and combined and has Pesto consistency
6) taste and adjust seasoning then transfer to a bowl or a clean glass jar
Its recommend covering the pesto for at least 30 minutes. All ingredients can properly combine, flavors can mix and unfold. The fridge shelf-life is up to 1 week adding a thin layer of olive oil. This preserves flavors and color.
Hacks by Olivia
“If you use Basil from your own garden then I would recommend to pick the leaves early in the morning. They are fresh and full of life after a good rest during the night.
There is an abundance of Basil at the moment and many farmers offer big bundles of it on their stalls.
I bought the almonds this time on the Aljezur street market which happens every 3rd Monday of the month. Smaller independent supermarkets in Aljezur and Rogil should have them. If you prefer very high quality organic Portugese almonds then I can highly recommend our amazing *no plastic/refill* shop Madame Granel and also Bioverde the health food shop in the old town.
Why use parmesan when local markets and small independent shops offer good strong and very tasty Portugese cheeses?
There is currently lots of fresh garlic available on the local markets. However, for the recipe I used the last of my precious garlic from Berberia Farm in Aljezur run by the very knowledgeable Pedro of the family business of Mercearia da igreja nova.
I hope this inspired you to make the most of the Basil season.
It always tastes nicer homemade and with locally sourced ingredients 😉“
