Pesto Sauce

Pesto is a newly acquired taste for me, so I was very pleased to find this recipe at the bottom of the stack of my grammy’s recipes. I planted two different kinds of basil in my garden this year, mainly to eat with the neighboring tomatoes. But I think this might be a better use.

2 cups loosely packed fresh basil leaves
2 medium garlic cloves
1 tsp. salt
1 tbs. grated parmesan cheese
grated romano cheese*
3/4 to 1 cup olive oil
6 tbs. unsalted butter

There were no instructions – I’m assuming one would just pack everything into the blender/food processor and whiz away to the desired conssistency. I guess this could also be done by hand, with a mortar and pestle, but that might not be for everyone.

* I’m guessing 1 tbs. as well

Strawberry Preserves

I probably found this recipe a little late for this year, but I’ll be ready for spring 2008! Perhaps this would work with other fruit as well. I see experiments with raspberries in my future.

This recipe is my grammy Christina’s and was written down by someone else in the family as it’s noted that the recipe comes from aunt Christina and also contains more notes and explanations than I’ve found in this batch of recipes given to me by my mother. It almost reads as if the person was at grammy’s side watching and writing down each step:

1 quart strawberries
4 cups granulated sugar
2 tsp. lemon juice

Wash and hull berries.
Put berries with 2 cups sugar into a small preserving kettle.
Bring up to a boiling point over low fire and boil rapidly for 5 minutes.
Add remaining sugar and lemon juice and boil 10-15 minutes.
A watery fruit will require longer cooking time.
Turn into an earthenware jar or deep crock or mixing bowl and let stand 24 hours, stir occasionally.
Seal cold in sterilized jars.
The small quantity and short working period are the secret of the deliciousness of these preserves. The lemon juice preserves the vivid red of the berries. You can make as many quarts of berries that the jar or crocks will hold, but only one quart at a time.