Basil and Tarragon Pesto

As much as I hate to admit it, I do refer to Rachael Ray's recipes from time to time (her gumbo recipe isn't half-bad, either). The idea of adding tarragon to pesto is pretty genius. I'm already a tarragon fanatic, but I think it adds a delicate flavor to pesto that's kind of refreshing for summer.

For this recipe, you will need:

  1/4 cup pine nuts
  1 cup basil, 20 leaves
  1/2 cup chopped tarragon leaves (10 to 12 stems)
  handful flat-leaf parsley
  1 lemon, zested
  1 clove garlic
  1/2 cup grated Parmigiano-Reggiano
  coarse black pepper
  1/3 cup extra-virgin olive oil, eyeball it

Toast pine nuts in a small pan until golden.

Place nuts, basil, tarragon, parsley, lemon zest, garlic, cheese and a little salt and pepper in a food processor. Turn the processor on and stream in the extra-virgin olive oil until thick sauce forms. Serve with pasta, meat, or whatever you like!




Adapted from Rachael Ray's Three Vegetable Penne Pasta.