Summer's Gone

But not forgotten . . .

 Our early October harvest

We call it home ec      :-)

I've had trouble keeping my pesto beautifully green.  I've tried "Ever Fresh" and crushed vitamin C tablets, which only seem to work until the sauce contacts the hot pasta.

This summer I got a tip from my sister's friend:  briefly blanch the basil in boiling water (say that five times fast!), shock in ice water, and proceed.  I blanched our entire harvest, tossing handfuls into the 8 quart pot and scooping leaves out with a strainer before depositing them in a sink full of ice water.  Dried in the salad spinner, the basil remained a gorgeous green (see above). 

An added bonus:  much more wilted basil fits in my food processor at once.  (I measured the leaves before blanching.)  I was able to make a 6 X batch instead of the usual double.  A quicker way to get a dozen bags of summer into the deep freeze!