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TO MAKE THE PESTO IN A BLENDER:
1. Combine the coarsely chopped fresh basil (or fresh parsley and dried basil), salt, pepper, garlic, pine nuts or walnuts and 1 cup of olive oil in the blender jar.
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2. Blend them at high speed until the ingredients are smooth, stopping the blender every 5 or 6 seconds to push the herbs down with a rubber spatula.
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3. The sauce should be thin enough to run off the spatula easily. If it seems too thick, blend in as much as ˝ cup more olive oil. Transfer the sauce to a bowl and stir in the grated cheese.
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TO MAKE THE PESTO BY HAND:
1. Crush the coarsely chopped fresh basil (or fresh parsley and dried basil) with a mortar and pestle or place in a heavy mixing bowl and crush with the back of a large wooden spoon until the herbs are smooth and almost pastelike.
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2. Work in the salt and pepper, garlic, and pine nuts or walnuts, and then add the olive oil ˝ cup at a time, continuing to crush the herbs.
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3. When the sauce is thin enough to run off the pestle or spoon easily, mix in the grated cheese.
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4. Serve the pesto thoroughly mixed into hot drained pasta that has been tossed first with a few tablespoons of soft butter.
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NOTE:. Often in Italy the pesto is thinned further by adding to it 1 or 2 tablespoons of the hot spaghetti water before mixing it with the pasta.
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