To make this basil pesto, crush garlic and pine nuts using a mortar and pestle. This is key to a delicious pesto sauce.

Add basil leaves and a sprinkle of sea salt and crush once again, pressing hard until you get a creamy consistency and the leaves have almost disappeared.

Add the parmesan and pecorino cheese and continue to mix through, to make a flavoursome pesto.

Pour a generous drizzle of EVOO in the pesto and crush through, adding a little bit at a time to the pesto, as you go.

ALTERNATIVE, QUICK OPTION

For a quick option and to achieve a smoother consistency, make your pesto using a hand blender in just 5 minutes!

Add the garlic clove (peeled), pine nuts and a pinch of rock salt to the base of your hand blender and mix well until it becomes fine.

Then, add the basil leaves to your pesto mix but don’t leave the blender on, just use the option for short bursts until the leaves are chopped down.

Add a tablespoon of both parmesan and pecorino, blend in short bursts, then add 2 tablespoons of oil and blend again. If it is too thick, add some more EVOO and blend one last time.

E ora si mangia, Vincenzo’s Plate….Enjoy!