Date: Wed, 18 Aug 1993 21:34:54 -0700 (PDT)
If you're making pesto this year, buy a few extra pounds of basil and try this. This process produces a concentrate that can be used in place of fresh herbs in many recipes. 2 cups clean, hard-packed leaves of your favorite fresh herb 1/2 cup of your favorite oil Combine the leaves and oil in a food processor, and chop until they form a paste. Freeze the paste until it is needed for a recipe. Ice cube trays provide an ideal sized cube of concentrate, but they're messy to clean afterwards. Once the cubes have frozen, transfer them to a zip-lock bag for storage. I've also used muffin tins for the initial freezing, but these produce cubes a little too large for my purposes. Another method for freezing and storage is to put the concentrate into small plastic containers. The oil coats everything, and helps protect the herbs from freezer burn. John Rodakowski (whyme@u.washington.edu)
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