Pesto making and recipe ideas from Michelle Darmody

A batch of pesto can be used in a variety of ways.  The most typical use is to stir a large spoonful through a bowl of freshly made pasta.

It is also good drizzled on a toasted cheese sandwich, added to a salad dressing to give it a bit of extra flavour or spread on a base to make a green pizza or simply added to scrambled eggs.

Pesto is quite simply the name given to an uncooked mixture of herbs, traditionally including fresh basil, and some oil.

Other ingredients such as garlic, lemon juice and nuts are often used to add texture and bulk.

I think pesto works best left a little rough so each of the ingredients can shine, rather than completely blending into a sauce.

The recipe included here is for a nice, simple basil pesto which is the most common herb used; it has a a proud Italian tradition.

Wild garlic is another alternative and it is wonderfully abundant in the Spring time. It also has a unique fresh flavour that preserves well in a pesto style mixture.

Pesto is originally thought to have traversed continents and been adapted along the way.

A very similar recipe to the one we use today can be traced back to Persia and the first Italian version seems to have been recorded in the 1600s.

The Italians used bunches of the wonderfully aromatic basil that grows so well in the warm Mediterranean sun.

Parsley can be added to the pesto to dampen down the flavour of the basil if you find it a bit strong. Pine nuts are the most popular addition in basil pesto in Italy.

However, I used cashew nuts in this recipe as they are a good alternative and less expensive.

I toast the nuts to add a bit of flavour but it works equally well with non roasted nuts, the flavour of the herbs comes through a little more.

Pesto has now come to encompass a varsity of rough sauces made in this method. It is nice to try different nuts and herbs in the recipe.

I added the pumpkin and coriander version as I think it is an interesting and tasty take on the original.

These pestos will keep in the fridge for about a week and are best covered in oil to keep the chopped ingredients below fresh.

Once made at the weekend it will speed up dinner throughout the week.

Weekend pesto making

Simple basil pesto

50g of cashew nuts

50g of parmesan, roughly grated

80g of basil, washed and then roughly chopped

2 cloves of garlic, roughly chopped

120mls of olive oil

Place the cashew nuts, the cheese, basil, garlic and oil into a blender and blitz until it is a rough paste. Season to taste.

Pumpkin seed and coriander pesto

130g pumpkin seeds

3 tbs of olive oil

1 tbs of lemon juice and the zest from 1 lemon

2 small cloves of garlic, roughly chopped

10g of chopped parsley

15 g of chopped coriander

Add all of the ingredients to a blender and blitz it until you have a rough paste with some texture.

Season to taste.

Basil and cashew nut pesto pasta with peas

pasta for four

two handfuls of frozen garden peas

100g of feta, crumbled

2 table spoons of the basil pesto recipe below

a handful of pine nuts

Put the pasta on to boil in lightly salted water and drain when cooked.

Place the peas in boiled water for five minutes, test that they are heated through.

Toss two tablespoons of the pesto through the pasta and stir in the peas and the crumbled feta.

Sprinkle with some cracked black pepper and the rest of the chopped nuts.

Chicken with pesto and melted mozzarella balls

rice for four

a dash of rapeseed oil

1 onion, sliced

4 cloves of garlic, sliced

4 chicken thighs, on the bone

3 tbs of pesto

1 tsp of creme fraiche

8 mini mozzarella balls

Put the rice on to boil and drain when cooked.

In an oven proof dish sauté an onion on the hob, stir the garlic through and stir it for a minute.

Brown the legs of chicken and stir in the pesto, add 2 tbs of water and place the dish into an oven heated to 180 degrees with the lid on. Bake for half an hour.

Stir in the creme fraiche and some seasoning, dot the mozzarella balls around the chicken legs.

Place back in the oven, with the lid off, until the chicken has cooked through and the mozzarella is nicely melted.

Serve spoon over the rice.

Whipped cream cheese pancakes

These are very popular in the Cake Café, they work with both sweet and savoury dressing.

We serve them with strawberries in the Summer months and compote throughout the rest of the year.

I often spread them with a little more butter when they are still warm and sprinkle with cinnamon powder and a drizzle of honey.

This are particularly tasty served topped with a fried and a drizzle of one of the above pestos.

225g of cream cheese

170mls of milk

4 eggs, separated

140g of plain flour

1 tsp of baking powder

a pinch of sea salt

50g of butter, melted

sunflower oil

Mix the cream cheese with the milk, egg yolks, flour, baking powder, salt and butter, until combined.

For fluffy pancakes whisk the egg whites until they are stiff and fold into the other ingredients.

Heat a frying pan to very hot with a little sunflower oil. Put half a ladle of batter into the pan and swirl around.

When the bubbles start to burst and the edges start to come away from the sides of the pan flip the pancake.