Pesto is an Italian sauce that raises basil to heavenly heights, and only fresh basil will do. Here’s my version, with ideas for how to best enjoy its heady pungency.

2 cups (packed) fresh basil leaves (stripped from stems, rinsed and patted dry)
2 garlic cloves, chopped
½ cup extra- virgin olive oil
3 tablespoons pine nuts (walnuts can be substituted)
½ cup plus 2 tablespoons freshly grated Parmesan cheese

Place basil and garlic in food processor and pulse for a few seconds. Add olive oil, nuts and cheese. Process just enough to chop nuts and combine all ingredients. It should have some texture.
Pack pesto into a glass or plastic container, top with a thin film of olive oil, and refrigerate. To freeze pesto, spoon into ice cube trays, freeze, and then pop frozen pesto cubes into Ziploc bags to use as needed.

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1. Blend into softened butter for a topping for grilled fish.

2. Stir into freshly cooked pasta.

3. Blend into goat cheese and stuff into hollowed-out
cherry tomatoes for an appetizer tray.

4. Mix into ricotta cheese and use in your favorite
lasagna or stuffed shells recipe.

5. Stir a spoonful into Minestrone soup just before
serving.

6. Add to your favorite tomato sauce.

7. Spread under skin of chicken breasts and grill.

8. Spread on thick tomato slices and broil.

9. Blend with mayonnaise, sour cream and canned,
flaked salmon for a delicious spread for raw
vegetables, crackers or slices of bread.

10. Use as a topping for pizza.

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(Makes 1 ¼ cups)
8 oz. reduced-fat cream cheese, softened
¼ cup pesto (see recipe)

Place cream cheese and pesto in a blender and blend until well combined. Serve with crackers, fresh cut vegetables or toasted pita bread wedges. For variations, add 2 or 3 tbsp of diced black olives, scallions, or red bell peppers.

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(Makes 1 ½ cups)
½ cup white wine vinegar
1 cup olive oil
1 tbsp. pesto (see recipe)
Freshly ground black pepper to taste

In a medium bowl, whisk together the vinegar, olive oil, pesto and black pepper. Serve over fresh tomatoes, cucumbers or salad greens.

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(Serves 6 to 8)

24 Jumbo pasta shells
1 15 oz. container nonfat ricotta cheese
1 10 oz. package frozen spinach, thawed and well
drained
¼ lb. mozzarella cheese, grated

2 large cloves garlic, chopped
1 small onion, chopped
1 small bell pepper, chopped
3 tbsp. olive oil
6 mushrooms, chopped
¼ cup dry red wine
1 26 oz. can crushed tomatoes
1 tbsp. dried Italian herb blend (or substitute equal
amount of dried oregano and basil)
2 tbsp. fresh parsley, chopped

2 cups packed fresh basil leaves
3 cloves garlic, chopped
½ cup olive oil
¼ cup pine nuts or walnuts
½ cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese

Cook pasta shells as package directs. Drain, and then arrange shells in a single layer on a cookie sheet sprayed with nonstick vegetable coating. When shells are cool, fill them with the ricotta - pesto stuffing (recipe below).

Heat olive oil in a Dutch oven and saute the garlic, onion and bell pepper for a few minutes, until fragrant. Add mushrooms and saute for an additional 5 minutes. Deglaze Dutch oven with red wine, scraping up any brown bits from bottom of pan. Add crushed tomatoes, dried herbs and fresh parsley, and simmer for an additional 15 to 20 minutes to allow flavors to blend. Allow to cool while proceeding with the pesto recipe (below).

Place the basil and garlic in a food processor and process for a few seconds. Add the olive oil, pine nuts or walnuts and Parmesan cheese. Process the ingredients just enough to chop nuts and form a chunky paste. Stir in ricotta and thawed, well drained spinach.

To Assemble:

Preheat oven to 350 deg. F.
Arrange stuffed shells in a single layer in two lightly oiled 8x8x2 inch casserole dishes. Pour marinara sauce over shells and sprinkle with grated Mozzarella cheese. Bake for 35 - 40 minutes, or until hot and bubbly.

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For true garlic lovers!

1 cup plum tomatoes, finely diced
2 medium garlic cloves, minced
2 tsp. fresh basil, slivered
12 rounds French bread, ¾ inch thick
2 ½ tbsp. olive oil

Preheat oven to 350 deg. F.
Arrange bread slices on baking sheet and brush with olive oil. Toast in oven until golden brown, about 10 minutes. Meanwhile, combine chopped tomatoes, basil and garlic in bowl, season with salt and pepper to taste. Top toasted French bread with mixture and serve.

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For a salad that is the essence of summer, arrange rounds of garden-ripe tomatoes and thin slices of fresh mozzarella cheese pinwheel-fashion on salad plates. Drizzle with extra-virgin olive oil and balsamic vinegar, and top with freshly ground pepper and slivered fresh basil leaves.

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This is my version of Baba Ghanoush, a Middle Eastern appetizer which transforms eggplant into a wonderful spread for pita bread. I think the lemon basil really adds to the flavor.

1 large eggplant
4 cloves garlic, chopped
3 tbsp. fresh lemon juice
¼ tsp. cumin powder
1/8 cup fresh lemon basil leaves, loosely packed
¼ cup Tahini (sesame seed paste)
Pita bread for dipping, cut into wedges

Preheat oven to 375 deg. F. Place eggplant on a baking sheet and roast in oven until soft. About 35-45 minutes. Remove from oven and allow eggplant to cool slightly. Peel eggplant, discard skin. Place eggplant pulp in a food processor and pulse to make a coarse paste. Add garlic, lemon juice, cumin and tahini and process briefly. Finally, add lemon basil leaves and process to make a smooth paste that still has a bit of texture.

Serve in shallow bowl surrounded by pita wedges.

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1 lb. medium shrimp, shelled
2 tbsp. olive oil
2 tbsp. butter
¼ cup white wine
1 tsp. lemon juice
Pinch of crushed cayenne pepper, to taste
2-3 garlic cloves finely diced
¼ cup lemon basil leaves, julienned

Heat butter and olive oil in large saucepan over medium heat until butter is melted. Add white wine, lemon juice and cayenne pepper and simmer for 3-4 minutes to blend flavors. Add shrimp and garlic and saute another 2-3 minutes, or until the shrimp is pink and opaque. Serve in a wide-rimmed bowl, with juices poured around the shrimp. Be sure to have plenty of crusty bread to sop up the juices!

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6 tbsp. butter or margarine, softened
1 cup sugar
2 eggs
Grated rind of 1 lemon
3 tbsp. fresh lemon basil, chopped
¾ cup milk
2 cups flour
1 ½ tsp. baking powder

Glaze

Juice of 2 lemons
Confectioners sugar (about 1 cup)

Cream butter and add sugar, mix well at medium speed with electric mixer. Add eggs one at a time, beating after each. Add lemon rind, herbs and milk. Combine flour and baking powder. Add creamed mixture.

Pour into a well-greased 9x5 inch loaf pan. Bake at 350 deg. F. for 1 hour, or until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean. For glaze, combine lemon juice and enough confectioners sugar to form a paste (approx. 1 cup). Pour glaze over hot bread. Cool in pan 10 minutes; remove from pan and cool on wire rack.

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Thai basil is beautiful enough to be grown in the flower garden, with its glossy green and purple leaves and showy purple flower heads. But its real value lies in the kitchen, where its heady, clove-like flavor is invaluable in Thai cuisine.

4 cups cold steamed rice (recipe below)
3 tbsp. canola oil
1 fresh jalapeno or Thai chile pepper, minced
1 large onion
2 tbsp. green curry paste (recipe below)
2 eggs, beaten
3 tbsp. light soy sauce
1 cup scallions, diced (including green tops)
½ cup fresh cilantro, chopped

Cook rice and allow to cool (see below). Heat oil in wok and stir-fry onions and chiles until fragrant. Add curry paste and fry until oil separates from mixture. Add rice and toss thoroughly until coated with the curry mixture and heated through. Push rice to the side of the wok and pour in the beaten eggs. Stir until eggs start to set, then mix the rice back in, stirring on high heat until eggs are cooked. Sprinkle with soy sauce and remove from heat. Stir in the scallions, garnish with chopped cilantro and serve.

Foolproof Steamed Rice

1 cup uncooked long grain rice
2 cups water
½ tsp. canola oil

In a large saucepan with a tight-fitting lid, pour rice, water and oil. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat. Stir ONLY ONCE when just starting to boil, then cover pan and reduce heat to lowest setting. Set timer for 20 minutes and DON’T PEEK! After exactly 20 minutes remove pan from burner and keep covered for up to 30 minutes for hot fluffy rice every time.

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4 fresh Thai chiles, diced
1 small onion, diced
2 large garlic cloves, chopped
1 tbsp. fresh lemongrass stem, peeled and chopped
4 tbsp. fresh Thai basil, chopped
1 tbsp. fresh ginger, grated
2 tsp. ground coriander
1 tsp. ground cumin
½ tsp. tumeric
1 ½ tbsp. canola oil

Place all ingredients in a food processor. Blend to a smooth paste, scraping down sides of processor bowl with a spatula as necessary.

This recipe yields approx. ¾ cup of green curry paste. The excess can be spooned into ice cube trays, frozen, then popped out into Ziploc bags and frozen for future Thai meals.

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1/3 cup fresh blueberries
2 ¼ cups white wine vinegar
1 tbsp. honey
1 cinnamon stick
1 sprig cinnamon basil

Place all but 1 tbsp. of the blueberries in a non-reactive sauce pan with the vinegar and honey. Bring to a boil, lower the heat slightly and boil slowly for 8 minutes. Strain out the blueberries and pour the vinegar into a hot sterilized pint jar. Add remaining blueberries, cinnamon stick and sprig of cinnamon basil. Seal and store in cool, dark spot for up to 6 months.

This is not only lovely to look at, but delicious when splashed on a salad or used in a marinade for grilled food.