Basic Pasta Pesto

Traditionally you would use pine nuts to make a pesto. But I find they are very expensive and not always so easy to find. Here I used cashews which I always have on hand, and loved the result. This recipe gave me enough to make one jar to use that night and another to freeze.
4 cups fresh basil leaves (no stems)
1/2 cup of cashews (feel free to use pine nuts or walnuts -- if using pine nuts only do 1/4 cup)
3 medium cloves of garlic
½ cup extra-virgin olive oil
½ cup freshly grated parmesan cheese
Salt and pepper to taste
Add the basil leaves, nuts, garlic and half the oil to a food processor. Drizzle in more oil as the processor is running until you reach a smooth consistency. Add the cheese and blend just long enough to combine.

Mix with cooked pasta choice. Check seasoning and serve.

Freezing tip: Instead of in a jar, pesto can be frozen in sandwich size plastic ziplock bags, flat, for several servings. Or, freeze them in ice cube trays and simple defrost for smaller servings.

For the Vegan - As a cheese substitute we like Go Veggie! Grated Parmesan or Follow Your Heart Vegan Parmesan Shreds. Just add cheese at the end when combining pesto with pasta rather than make it a part of the pesto sauce.

For the Gluten-free - Both Jovial with their organic brown rice pasta and Barilla make easy to find tasty options.

For the Carnivore -- add 2 TBSP olive oil to pan and when hot, add thinly sliced chicken breasts. Once cooked, combine with reserved pesto and serve with pasta.