Today’s Homemaker

So as most of you know, this summer was a busy one for me. However, there is NO excuse for what I’ve done…I’ve completely ignored a proliferating basil plant on the side of my house. In fact, I had clear forgotten about it until I happened to mosey over there today to check on the roses (which had also been pretty much ignored).

As a self-professed basil lover, I am ashamed. I need to redeem myself, but how? I could engorge myself with basil recipes, but that might make me despise the plant in time. So I’ve decided to take a more moderate approach. Yes, I will indulge in a few well-chosen basil-based dishes: pesto (of course), basil grilled chicken with tomato basil butter, chicken stuffed with cheese, sun-dried tomatoes, and basil, and four cheese margherita pizza are my weapons of choice. But I will also do something very uncharacteristically domestic…I will preserve it before the frost gets it.

And how shall I do this? Well, I’ve heard of a lot of different methods of freezing basil, but the one that gets the “Most Likely to Succeed” award is from Kalyn of Kalyn’s Kitchen. It looks easy enough to do, even without a food processor (which I don’t have). Basically, you just chop up the basil, put in just enough olive oil to coat it all, mix well, and pack tightly in individual containers before freezing. Why the olive oil? Basil has a nasty tendency to turn black when frozen…yum.

Oh, and one more thing: I just discovered that if I have leftover pesto and want to keep it from turning ugly in the fridge (which it will, overnight), I can pour a thin layer of olive oil over the top to keep it green. (Thanks, Martha).