Pesto Grilled Cheese

The crazy heat this week in Texas has caused my Basil plants to look rather wilted no matter how often I water them. In an effort to save my poor Basil from the relentless Texas Heat, I picked as many of the fragrant leaves as I could and decided to make a batch of Basis Pesto. Pesto is so versatile, you can use it in a sandwich to add extra flavor, toss it with some chicken and pasta for an easy to pull together pasta dish, or even use it in place of pizza sauce.

Pesto Grilled Cheese

Ingredients:
2 slices sourdough bread
2 tbsp. Pesto (recipe below)
4 slices of tomato
1/4 cup shredded mozzarella cheese
1 tbsp. butter

                 Directions:

Preheat a small skillet on medium heat. Spread half of the Pesto on one slice of bread. Top with tomato and mozzarella, finishing with the remaining pesto. Top with the remaining slice of the bread. Spread half of the butter on the outside of the sandwich and place butter side down on the skillet. Spread the remaining butter on the top of the sandwich and turn when the bottom has become golden brown. Let the other side become golden brown. Slice on the diagonal and serve warm.

Basil Pesto

recipe courtesy of All Recipes.com (my changes in italics)

Ingredients:
3 cups chopped fresh basil (I had about three handfuls of Basil that I equated to about 3 cups)
1 cup extra virgin olive oil (this is just an approximate, add enough to get the consistency you like)
1/2 cup pine nuts
1/8 cup Brazil nuts (I omitted this because I didn't have any)
2/3 cups grated Parmesan cheese
2 tablespoons minced garlic (I just tossed in 3 medium size garlic cloves)
1/2 tsp. chili powder (I didn't add any chili to my pesto)
Salt to taste

Directions:
Place the basil in a blender (I used a food processor). Pour about 1 table spoon of the oil and blend the basil into a paste. Gradually add pine nuts, Brazil Nuts, Parmesan cheese, garlic, chili powder, and remaning oil. Continue to blend until smooth.