If you’ve never had homemade pesto, you really need to try it. It is so much better than store-bought, and it is super fast and easy with a food processor. (I don’t think it works quite as well with a blender, but you can use one if that’s all you have)
You will need a lot of basil for this. Like, a lot. I got this kind that is the actual plant instead of the pre-picked kind in a package because it doesn’t go bad as easily. But I used almost two whole plants worth.
Regular pesto has pine nuts in it, but walnuts are easier to find and don’t have the potential to give you a weird taste in your mouth for weeks. It also tastes about the same. You can make this exact same recipe with pine nuts though, just make sure they are fresh.
Is there something you always see at the grocery store and think you need more of it? For my husband, it’s Pam. For me, it’s parmesan cheese. But I am kind of obsessed with parmesan and eat it constantly, so it’s OK.
You should totally get the fresh kind of parmesan for this recipe — not the green package kind — if at all possible.
There are numerous things you can do with this pesto. Perhaps the most obvious is to use it as a pasta sauce; I had it with sweet potato gnocchi tonight. But I also love it as part of a sandwich (hot or cold) with slices of tomato and mozzarella. You can also put it on meat or poultry. Or just eat it on bread or crackers. Mmmm.
I can neither confirm nor deny that I used a piece of bread to get the leftover pesto out of the Cuisinart.
If you use it as a pasta sauce, make sure you mix the pesto with a little of the pasta cooking water so the sauce will coat the pasta. It will also melt the cheese and make the sauce look creamier.
Makes about a cup

Pesto (adapted from The Gourmet Cookbook)
3 large garlic cloves (peeled)
1/2 cup toasted* walnuts (or pine nuts)
2/3 grated Parmigiano-Reggiano
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
3 cups loosely packed fresh basil leaves**
2/3 cup (about) extra-virgin olive oil

Put garlic in the food processor to finely chop. Stop the motor and add nuts, cheese, salt, pepper and basil. Process until finely chopped. With the motor running, add oil (slowly!) blending until it is the consistency you want. The oil should be incorporated by the pesto should not be totally smooth.

*To toast the nuts, put them on a cookie sheet in an oven at 400 degrees for about 5 minutes, stirring occasionally. They’re ready when they start to smell nutty. Don’t let them burn!

**Make sure you rinse off the basil leaves first. Blot them with paper towels to get rid of the excess water.

***If you are making this with a blender, you will probably have to keep stopping it to scrape down the sides. You also should be really careful when adding olive oil. You may even want to stir the last of it in yourself.