An abundance of basil

 

The gardening season is upon us, and I anticipate many triumphs and failures along the way.  I seem to always do well and have an abundance of courgettes paired with their stunning and very delicious flowers, cucumbers and tomatoes, my herb garden blooms and pretty much everything else takes care of itself with a few minor casualties along the way.

 

That said I can never seem to grow basil from seed well enough. If it germinates, it does not grow very well and so inevitably it gives up and withers away into a pot of dissatisfaction and disappointment. So, I cheat, and this cheat is fool proof, easy and cheaper than a packet of seeds.

 

I buy a supermarket basil plant and cut each stem, to the base, I then pop the stem into a jar of water and leave it to form roots which should take a couple of weeks or there abouts. Ensure you leave only a few leaves on the top of each stem, remove surplus, and use them as required. Then you simply plant each rooted stem into a pot of compost, thus giving you multiple basil plants. This little effort really does work a treat. What is more is this can be actioned throughout the year so that you always are able to have this delicate favourite available in your kitchen within grabbing distance of your cooking pot. Once potted the plants do need to stay indoors until we have hot summer heat outdoors.

 

Here are two of my favourite ways to use basil. Savoury and sweet.

 

 

Basil and ricotta pesto

Preparation time: 5 minutes

Makes: 500ml jar

 

250g basil

70g pine nuts un-toasted (substitute for sunflowers seeds)

1 large garlic clove, peeled.

60g Parmigiano Reggiano, grated.

Salt & pepper, to season

80ml Extra Virgin Olive Oil (or a light olive oil if you prefer a lighter note)

125g ricotta

Lemon zest (optional)

 

  1. Into a food processor add the basil, pine-nuts, peeled garlic, Parmigiano Reggiano, salt, and pepper.
  2. Blitz for 30 seconds.
  3. Pour in half of the oil and blitz for a further 30 seconds. Slowly pour in the remaining oil until you have achieved the perfect pesto, a loose dropping consistency would be ideal.
  4. Spoon in and stir the ricotta. Taste and season as required. Spritz of lemon would be a welcome addition.

 

 

Basil infused pannacotta with a berry compote

Preparation time: 10 minutes               Cooking time: 4 minutes             Setting time: 2 hours

Serves: 4

250ml milk

250ml double cream

1 vanilla pod, seeds, and pod

25g caster sugar

8 basil leaves, plus extra when serving.

3 gelatin leaves

400g seasonal berries

2 tbsp. granulated sugar

 

Place the gelatine leaves in a bowl of cold water and soak them for 5 minutes, until softened.

Combine the milk, cream, vanilla seeds and casings from the vanilla pod in a small saucepan.  Sprinkle in the sugar and add the basil leaves.

Bring the mixture to a light simmer and remove from the heat.  Allow the sugar to dissolve.

Remove the vanilla pod casing and basil leaves, discard.

Squeeze the gelatine leaves to remove excess water and place into the hot milky mixture, stir to dissolve.

Place two berries into the base of your wine glasses or ramekins.  Top with the cream mixture and pop into the fridge for at least 3 hours to chill.

Making the fruit compote.

Add your chosen fruit to a small saucepan with 2 tbsp of sugar. Simmer over a medium heat for 5 minutes until a little jammy.

Pass the mixture through a sieve to remove any seeds and discard, reserving the smooth compote to add to the top of your pannacotta later this evening.

Once you are ready to serve, add a spoonful of the compote to the top of the pannacotta and decorate with a basil leaf.