Pesto

Genuine pesto is pounded in a mortar with a pestle. For a quick version, make it in a blender (though you'll lose the bright emerald greenness that a pestle-and-mortar effort gives):

Whiz together a large bunch of fresh basil, two cloves of peeled and crushed garlic, 1/4 cup pine nuts and about 8 tablespoons of good olive oil. Keep pushing the mixture down, stopping the machine and using a spatula.

When it's done, decant and stir in a generous 1/4 cup of finely grated cheese. Authentically, this should be Sardo, a pungent ewe's milk cheese from Sardinia. If you are using Parmigiano-Reggiano, the most accurate taste is contrived by using four parts Parmigiano to one part Romano pecorino, a sharper cheese.

It's worth making because bought pesto isn't always very good. Having tried most local offerings, the most authentic  - with good basil/cheese balance - seems to be Mamma Lucia's, at 2409 University Blvd West, Wheaton, 301 949 2112. Don't even think about that stuff in tubes: pesto isn't toothpaste.

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