I love pesto. I think it belongs on everything. It’s a spread, a sauce, a dip, a dressing. Pesto is an essential condiment in my book, and something I think everyone should have in their freezer, ready to be defrosted at a moment’s notice. It’ll save you in a pinch, whether you have last minute dinner guests or you just get a massive craving for pesto pasta, pesto chicken, or pesto on a darn Wheat Thin. If you have pesto in your freezer, you’re set.

A while ago, I saw this recipe on Not Without Salt and picked up mortadella during a Trader Joe’s shopping frenzy spree. I couldn’t wait to use all of it to recreate this sandwich a few times. I’d surely have enough pesto to use up all the mortadella…

So, I made one whole mortadella sandwich! The rest of the pesto was consumed on toast, eggs, and pasta (see below the recipe for breakfast ideas). Some days I had it both with breakfast and with dinner. I’m a grown (ish) woman! I can eat pesto whenever I want! I still have a pinch left at home that I may throw on some salmon tonight. Or maybe I’ll just get out a spoon…who knows? It’s that good.

The rest of the mortadella was consumed straight from the package as snacks. Oops.

As I do with most of the pesto I make now, I use recipes as an inspiration and make up my very own combination (see: Sage, Prosciutto, & Walnut Pesto). For example, I didn’t have a lemon on hand so I threw in a pinch of white wine for a little acidity. You can make pesto the way that you like it. Just another pro for pesto, y’all!

Gee, I guess it’s already time to make another batch for the freezer.

Arugula & Pistachio Pesto

Yields: about 2 cups

Ingredients:

2-3 large garlic cloves

2 packed cups or arugula

¼ cup of packed parsley

Splash of white wine or lemon juice

Pinch of red pepper flakes

1 cup of roasted, salted, shelled pistachios

¾ cup olive oil

1 cup freshly grated Parmesan

Kosher salt

Freshly ground pepper

Instructions:

1. Add garlic, salt and pepper to a food processor and pulse until nicely minced, about 30 seconds.
2. Add the arugula, parsley, pistachios, pepper flakes, and wine or lemon juice. Run the processor until the mixture is blended and evenly chopped.
3. With the processor running, add the olive oil slowly until it is fully incorporated and you have a paste-like consistency.
4. Add the Parmesan and mix until the pesto is blended.
5. Check for seasonings and either freeze in a container with a little olive oil on top, or keep in the fridge until ready to use!

*I don’t have any photos because I hit these breakfasts hard, but I love using pesto with eggs in the morning. Sometimes I spread a piece of toast with pesto and top with a fried egg, some olive oil and a sprinkle of sea salt. Other times I scramble two eggs and top with a few dollops of pesto and an extra sprinkle or Parmesan or pecorino. The possibilities are endless. Show me whatcha got.