HERB - herbs of the week

[RAISYA@aol.com]

Clare,

>Do you think you could find and post the period pesto sauce?  I had never
>seen anything listed like that and I think that'd be fun to try.

I haven't been able to find a copy of DYETS DRY DINNER (Henry Buttes, 1599),
so I'm working from THE DELECTABLE PAST (Esther Aresty, 1964, Simon and
Schuster), and her recipe may or may not be a redaction of the original (the
wording is vague).  But here it is:

"4 tblspn chopped basil
2 tblspn ground pine-nuts or walnuts
3 garlic cloves, crushed or pressed
3 tblspn grated Locatelli or Parmesan cheese
5 tblspn olive oil combined with 2 tblspn melted butter (7 tblspn total)

Pound the basil leaves, the nuts and the garlic in a mortar (add a dash of
salt).  When the basil is quite crushed, add the cheese and continue to mash
and pound until a thick puree is formed.  Slowly add the oil and butter
mixture, stirring so that a smooth consistency results."

I prefer to substitute butter for the olive oil and omit the salt, but that's
a personal preference.  It could probably be made in a blender, it takes me
about 30 minutes to make this with a mortar.

Raisya
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