Recipe for Basil Pesto without Nuts or "Pistou"

We don't have a huge garden, but our herbs are growing like weeds. We have lemon verbena, rosemary, thai basil, and basil. My basil plants were full so I decided to make a batch of pesto to freeze.

Josh is allergic to nuts so I actually made a French "pistou," which is similar to pesto, but has no nuts. There are several variations of pistou, it usually has more garlic than basil. You can also make it with or without cheese. I wanted it to taste similar to pesto, so I just played around and made it to my taste:)

I used basil leaves, garlic, parmesan cheese, a little lemon juice, olive oil, and salt and pepper. I combined everything in my food processor and had pistou in seconds. I put the sauce in a container and put it in the freezer. Pistou and pesto freezes beautifully. I can't wait to use it on homemade pasta, pizza, or a panini! It is also good stirred into soups.

Basil Pesto without Nuts or "Pistou"

(Printable Recipe)

3 cups fresh basil leaves

2-3 cloves garlic

About 1/4 cup quality parmesan cheese, grated

Splash of fresh lemon juice

About 1/2 cup olive oil

Salt and pepper to taste

1. In a food processor or blender, chop up the garlic until it is minced.

2. Add in the basil and cheese and start to blend. Slowly drizzle in the olive oil while the machine is running. Blend until smooth.

3. Squeeze in a little lemon juice and add salt and pepper to taste.

4. Taste the sauce and adjust to your likings.

5. Put in a freezer container and freeze if you wish or use it right away.

Italian Sausage Lasagna

My dad is visiting from Illinois. He drove out to Utah last week, which is a 22 hour drive. My dad doesn't believe in stopping, only to fill up on gas, licorice, and M&M's. He says he just closes his eyes and keeps on driving:) We are having a great time so far. It is always nice having him around.

Sunday night my sister's family came over for dinner. We made homemade lasagna, an Artisan Bread in Five Loaf, and salad for dinner. Everything was quite tasty. We had to do two lasagnas though, a meat lover's and a veggie. I don't mind pleasing everyone, different strokes for different folks:)

Today I am sharing the Italian sausage recipe. I didn't have a taste, but everyone else enjoyed it. Josh made homemade noodles and I worked on the sauce and fillings. The lasagna came together in no time. I included the recipes for the sauce and noodles. Of course you can use store bought, but we believe fresh is best:) We use our KitchenAid mixer and pasta attachment and it makes pasta making super simple.

It was fun having the family over for dinner. As you can see below my niece, loved the ABin5 bread. She is always the life of the party!

Italian Sausage Lasagna

(Printable Recipe)

Marinara Sauce

Olive oil
1 onion, chopped
3 cloves garlic, minced
Crushed red pepper flakes
Fennel seeds
3 cans diced tomatoes
1 small can tomato sauce
Fresh basil, chopped
Italian seasoning
Salt and black pepper

1. Heat oil in a large skillet. Add onion, cook until tender. Add garlic, red pepper flakes, and fennel seeds.
2. Add in tomatoes and tomato sauce. Stir.
3. Add in fresh basil, Italian seasoning, salt and pepper.
4. Let simmer for 30 minutes.

Noodles

4 large eggs

1 T water

3 1/2 cups sifted all purpose flour

1 tsp. salt

1. Place eggs, water, flour and salt in mixer bowl. Attach flat beater. Turn to Speed 2 and mix for 30 seconds.

2. Put on the dough hook. Turn to Speed 2 and knead for 2 minutes. Remove dough and knead by had for 2 minutes.

3. Let the dough rest for 20 minutes. Follow pasta maker's instructions. You can roll it by hand, but we use our KA pasta attachment, which is worth every penny!

Lasagna

Lasagna noodles
Italian sausage
Fennel seeds
Crushed red pepper
2 cups Ricotta cheese
2 eggs
Black pepper
Dried basil
1/2 cup Parmesan cheese,plus more for the top of lasagna
Mozzarella cheese
Sauce

1. In a large skillet brown the Italian sausage with fennel seeds and crushed red pepper. I don't measure the seasons, just a dash or two. Cook sausage until brown and cooked all the way through.
2. Mix ricotta cheese, eggs, black pepper, dried basil, and parmesan in a small bowl.
3. In a large casserole dish or pan start creating the lasagna.
4. Spoon some marinara sauce at the bottom, add a layer of noodles.
5. Next, add sauce, ricotta mixture, sausage, and mozzarella cheese. I don't measure just spread around evenly. Be generous with all of the ingredients.
6. Add another layer or noodles and continue the layering process.
7. When you are finished layering, top the lasagna off with mozzarella cheese and parmesan cheese.
8. Bake in a 350 degree oven for about an hour or until bubbly.
9. Let it sit for 10 minutes before cutting.