LilyBakes

Look for us on Facebook! LilyBakes. Please "Like" us today!

Wednesday, January 22, 2014

Is freezing Pesto Basil worth it?


Last summer I decided to grow Basil. For the first time ever, I tried making Basil Pesto and it was just about the best thing I had tasted in years. I couldn't wait to make more! So, I planted two Basil plants in my square foot garden. I nurtured them and took great care in cutting leaves in such a way that it would propegate and make more and more leaves. (Thank You Pinterest)

Here's how to propagate your Basil so it grows into a wonderfully huge, bushy plant. Save this tip for summer!
Basil-pruning-tutorial

Just a little shout out for my sweetie-we did research and then he made me an amazing Square Foot garden similar to this website.  (more posts on this later)
Square Foot Garden "I can totally make that"

I enjoyed lots of Pesto all summer long. When Fall arrived I had two large plants left and I couldn't bear to let the leaves go to waste. The big question was-is it worth it to freeze pesto? I'm here to tell you that on this FRIGID day in Jan with -0 temperatures and snow IT WAS WORTH IT! I made a big batch of pesto and then put it into an ice cube tray. Once frozen, I put the cubes into Mason jars and popped them into the freezer. Now, when I feel like having a little pasta, I pop a cube into a small dish and in an hour or so it has thawed perfectly and I mix it into freshly boiled pasta. SO worth it. And every bit reminds me of last summer and my cheerful little garden.

UPDATE: Today is April 3rd and yesterday I just finished the LAST cube of Basil Pesto that I had frozen last summer. It was still delicious, flavorful and WORTH the effort. This summer, every time I make pesto I'm going to make extra and freeze it. I will freeze every last bit!!  It was completely worth it. So nice to have something of summer to enjoy all chilly winter long.

No comments:

Post a Comment