Fermented Pesto

It has been a beautiful year for the garden.  Sun, warm days, rain, what more could we ask for.  I was a tiny bit "plant happy " this spring.  Not only did I plant lots of vegetables close together but I also planted maybe a few too many of one thing.  One of those would be basil.  We have basil coming out our ears.  In my opinion it is a good thing, my family is not so sure.  One of the ways we used it this year was to make fermented pesto.  In my opinion anything fermented has to be good for you.....right?  This was very good but did have a fermented flavor to it.  You will have to try it and let me know what you think.

You will need fresh basil, salt, garlic, whey, and spring water for this recipe.  I picked, washed, and drained the basil  leaves. Don't know if you all have this problem at your house but, it seems that every time our lawn gets mowed I have extra grass on my herbs and vegetables.


Place leaves without stems in quart jar, filling 3/4 full.  Add 1/4 cup whey (you can make this recipe without whey, you just ferment longer) place 3 cloves in jar (I used 6 in the second jar) add 1 tbsp sea salt, and fill jar with spring water  until just over the leaves.

 

Cover with a non-airtight lid.  I use a coffee filter and a rubber band. If you are using whey let sit out 2 days (if not using whey let sit out 12-14 days) then drain half the juice and place in blender. Blend with 1/2 cup walnuts and 1/2 cup Parmesan (we use goat cheese). Once blended slowly add 1/4-1/2 cup olive oil.  This pesto is a little more juicy than regular pesto, you can drain more juice off if you like a thicker consistency. We like it thinner when putting it in pasta and other recipes.....thicker for spreading on crackers.


Fermented Pesto
Fresh basil leaves~Approx 3 cups
1/4 cup whey
1 tbsp sea salt
3 cloves garlic (we like 6 cloves better)
1/2 cut walnuts (pine nuts)
1/2 cup parmesan cheese (soft goat cheese)
1/4-1/2 cup olive oil

Here is the the link to an old post about regular pesto if you want to try it.  http://raf6.blogspot.com/2012/08/pesto.html