I freeze my basil leaves so I have them to put in soups and stews all winter...just an alternative to pesto.

Spread it on bread to make caprese....slice of italian bread, fresh mozzarella, fresh sliced tomato...yum!

A good way to keep pesto is to freeze it: Spread it out in a shallow dish or edged cookie sheet and freeze it (either grease the dish, or line it with parchment paper). When it's frozen, remove it and break it into pieces to store in a freezer bag. Remove chunks as you need them, in the size you think you're going to need them.

I prefer freezing it that way rather than in ice cube trays (which I've done previously), because I can use a larger or smaller amount, depending on what I was making.

I read somewhere that if you freeze it, don't put the garlic in it -- put the garlic in when you thaw and use. Is that correct?

" if you freeze it, don't put the garlic in it "

I've never heard that, but I never noticed a problem with my pesto when I froze it with garlic in it.

I freeze it in small containers, enough for a 2-person serving. I don't put the parmesan in until I toss it with the macaroni. Also, I freeze leaves, like Annie does, so that when I make pizza, I can scatter some on the top before baking. I envy those who have good basil this year. My plant on the balcony is dying a slow death. Grandma grew basil on her Bronx fire escape, so I do it as an homage to her. The last few years, the plants have not done well. Maybe Grandma is trying to tell me something.

The size batch I usually make is enough to use half for the evening meal, and freeze half. Usually in ~ 4 oz containers but don’t fuss over amount. Cover with thin layer of olive oil. Have pest all winter.

I sometimes spread it over fish to bake—salmon or cod. Put some in soups as above. If I save out a tbsp or so, good to toss with chopped tomatoes for crostini or add to salad. But I too am looking for more ways to use, since some family members are not big on carbs.

How can I freeze the leaves without them going black? What's the technique?

I do freeze pesto. That works well. I freeze it as is. I don't omit the garlic, cheese or anything else.

I put mine in quart size zip lock bags, then smush it down to fill the edges of the bag until it's a fairly thin sheet and stack them in the freezer. Then I can open the bag and easily break off chunks as needed. I used to freeze in ice cube trays but found it was too difficult to get the right amount for my needs. I use mostly in pasta dishes, I layer it with a butter/cream cheese mixture for an appetizer strata, put in soups, I make a pesto salad dressing by adding it to olive oil and a bit of lemon juice.

edited to add: I read that Martha Stewart puts a bit of lemon juice in her pesto to keep the color bright, so I've started doing that. It works! Even in the freezer, it stays a nice bright green.

Uses, put on new potatoes or baked potatoes. Put it on your pizza along with or without the tomato sauce. put it on grilled panini sandwiches. Heck, put it on your hamburgers and hotdogs.

patriciae.

I just made a big batch of Pesto and froze most of it in ice cube trays. I fed the rest of the basil plants to my chickens since it was starting to flower. They love the leaves! I grow some under lights indoors over the winter for pizza topping and such.

^Same as LJ…ice cube trays.

Check some of these links for ideas.

Half Baked Harvest - Pesto

This is a nice combo of pasta, potatos and green beans using pesto - many variations, but I always use a short, tubular pasta about the same size as the green beans

https://www.ciaoitalia.com/recipes/trenette-with-pesto-potatoes-and-green-beans-trenette-con-pesto-patate-e-fagioli

When I make a large batch of pesto, I store it in a jar and stir it with a stick to get air bubbles out, Then I tap the jar to make sure that the pesto is all at the bottom of the jar, with a level top, which I smooth out with a spoon. Then I pour about 1/4" of olive oil, to sit on top of the pesto and store the jars closed in the fridge. The olive oil on top will solidify and hermetically seal the pesto below.

When I want to use the pesto, I use a fork to lift the solidified olive out, which I put into a small bowl or dish, to use again for sealing, and then I retrieve however much pesto I want to use.

I have found this method to work better for me than freezing and it does not affect the color or texture of the basil.

Pesto is good on chicken breast, especially if you are making chicken Parmigiana. You can also use it on a sandwich, similar to Muffuletta.

How long does it keep in the jar, Lars?

Once you have this figured out, remember you can use pesto as a template to make other herb pastes. :)

I make a lot more wild garlic pesto than basil because it thrives here, whereas basil is a bit tricky. Basil needs a lot of heat. I have to grow it in the greenhouse and I rarely have a large amount. But I have frozen both pestos without issue. The colour doesn't seem to go off.

We had BLT's the other night for dinner and I mixed a little pesto in with the mayo. Delicious! I have also made herbed butter using basil and other herbs, and that can be frozen for months - make some now for the holidays! There are tons of recipes for it on Pinterest.

+again for frozen, with oil to prevent burns. The lemon sounds like a decent idea as well, though it may alter the taste a bit for certain applications.

Other ideas --
Soupe au Pistou can work with pesto instead. of pistou (no nuts). It works well in parties and gatherings. 0Or just make a minestrone and add a dollop on top.
I make pizzas with it as the sauce, with toppings of mozzarella, ricotta and roasted pepper s (onions or grilled eggplant work too)
I make Samin Nosrat's lasagne recipe and instead of chopped basil I stir in pesto (I may cut back on the salt). It works with the frozen stuff quite well.

“Or just make a minestrone and add a dollop on top.”

Yes…very good!

Forgot about this one from Ina G.

Pasta, Pesto and Peas

Porkchop, I too have read in the past that adding garlic before freezing can make it taste bitter. I never add garlic to my roasted tomatoes either before freezing, preferring to add fresh when I prepare them for a sauce or whatever. I have addedgarlic to pesto, however and not noticed the bitterness. Maybe because the basil is strong.

I really like store-bought pesto from the Barilla brand. My friend is coming over soon and I want to make my own pesto because he has diabetes and it will be better for him. We are planning to go to the doctor together because the doctor recommended him Buy Ozempic Online last time and now he needs a checkup. I hope everything goes well and we will have a lot of fun during the rest of our free time.

I can't remember if anyone has said this, or similar, but I was just thinking how nice pesto on drained ricotta on crusty crunchy toast is, but my basil plant died and the outdoor one was devoured by snails :(

Update: My farm box had a little packet of basil in it. I suppose I could make just enough pesto for a couple pieces of toast... But I can't convince myself that it's worth the bother...

Soupe au pistou. Pistou is the French pesto - with tomatoes added. It's served on top of a soup a bit like minestrone. So good.

https://foodnouveau.com/soupe-au-pistou/

I came across a recipe for pesto sauce- cream in a saucepan, add extra garlic, the pesto, extra parmesan. I added a little chicken stock to thin it a little. It was good on potatoes and a pork chop.

My kids like the cheese tortellini that you get in the pasta aisle. I think Barilla is the brand. I'm curious if you've tried pesto on that. It seems like it would be good and quick to fix. Also this thread is making me hungry. : )

Tortellini with pesto was a staple for our kids. Any filling. But it's not a balanced meal so they always had fruit or something like a couple of raw carrots with it.