No.

I've frozen just basil and oil, a pesto base sans nuts and cheese (which is what you want to do) and the completed pesto itself. Although some say it tastes better to add cheese and nuts or cheese, nuts and garlic after it's thawed, I personally haven't noticed any difference.

Carol

Thanks Carol, I have a lot of garlic that I need to use. It's fine but just not good for storage. I freeze cooked garlic all the time in various dishes and haven't noticed a difference either. Of course in pesto it's raw so that was my concern.

I've done it plenty of times too --- I ususlly puree and freeze the basil, garlic, pine nuts, and a little olive oil, then add parmesan and a dab of butter at serving time. Though I expect Carol's right and adding cheese before freezing would work fine, too, since it's quite a hard cheese. I like grating it fresh on top for the presentation, however.

Enjoy!

Zabby

I agree, Zabby. The completed pesto I use for "stir-ins", minestrone and such, where presentation is less of an issue.

Of course, one could argue it's difficult to add too much Parmesan to anything!

Do you add a bit of pasta water to your pesto to help it adhere better?

Carol

Carol,

Starting recently, I've been using less olive oil and some pasta water to get a similar consistency but make it a bit less fattening; this trick was suggested by Canadian heart-smart cooking guru Anne Lindsay in one of her early books, _Smart Cooking_, which I use for a lot of yummy basics (including the yummy simple tomato-basil soup I posted a while back).

I didn't ever think about it adhering better, but if it does, so much the better!

It's not like pesto pasta is ever going to be a truly light, healthy dish, alas. (In Lindsay's book, in fact, she gives the pesto recipe for use in a soupe au pistou, not on pasta).) And I always add a wee bit of butter when serving too because I just think it adds a lot of taste. So no low-fat medals for me, but a lot of yums!

Z, who just harvested & pesto'd her measly crop of basil last night

Soup au pistou. Be still my beating heart. Patricia Wells' recipe is to die for.

I also use a dab of pesto in a pasta salad with spinach and pesto whirled in a mayonnaise-based dressing. Not now, alas, with the spinach scare. It makes a lovely "green" salad with bright red cherry tomatoes peeping out.

Carol

I haven't heard of mixing pasta water in with the pesto, I'll try it. Anything to cut back on calories.

Zabby, I wish I could share my basil with you. I have so much and I'm gonna cry when the cold gets it. I processed 3 ice cube trays yesterday....didn't add the cheese tho. It sure reduces a lot when it's processed doesn't it? The temps are back up this week so I'll do 3 more trays Wed.

I have a very healthy smaller sized basil plant that got shaded by the cukes this summer. Then the cukes vines died. I'm thinking of digging it up and keeping it in a well lit unheated room I have. The temps aren't REALLY cold in there until Jan when it drops into the deep freeze.

What I want to know is this: After you fill a plastic ice cube tray with basil and olive oil and especially garlic, can you ever use that ice cube tray for anything else?!? Or do you designate some just for that? Besides water, we freeze a lot of fruit juice in cubes, and I would hate them to smell like basil or garlic. I do have extra basil right now, and some garlic, so I am thinking about this as well.

Marcia

I've not had any problems with lingering flavors reusing the ice cube trays for other things. I just run them through the dishwasher afterwards.

Leigh

peggy, I wish you could, too! I had some sadness with my first batch of seedlings and only got a few plants in very late in the season, so I had less than usual. I even worked out a trade with my sister --- Annie's salsa for frozen pesto swap when I went to visit her 3 hours away --- but then there were some complications in my travel home and the pesto got warmed up and spoiled. So now I'm out the salsa AND have a measly basil harvest. Sigh. (It always is all or nothing with stuff, isn't it?)

But I froze about four meals' worth of pesto, and four times this winter is probably as often as we really need that much pasta (or pizza crust) and olive oil.

I will say I heartily recommend freezing in a non-stick muffin pan, which I tried for the first time. It was a bit easier & faster to fill than an ice-cube tray, and made little pesto "pucks" of just about the right size for a pasta meal for two (somewhere btwn 1/3 and 1/2 a cup).

Carol, can you not get some nice, safe British Columbian spinach where you are? The Canadian stuff has a clean bill of health; now, most grocery stores here stock a lot from the U.S. because it comes cheaply and easily, but after the first day or two they have mostly found Canadian sources (with big signs on the doors making clear that this is the case) so we have it available again.

Zabby