Ingredients:

1 cup of fresh basil

1/2 cup of fresh spearmint

1/2 cup of fresh mint

1/2 cup of freshly grated parmesan cheese

1/4 cup of pine nuts

3/4 cup of sunflower oil

fresh cloves of garlic (measure with your heart)

salt and pepper

Directions and tips:

Rinse mint and Basil. Fresh from the garden or farmers market is best. I find store-bought herbs to be bitter. The first time I made this recipe, I used two different types of mint because I didn’t have enough of one. I recommend using sweet mint. Your pesto will come out better if you do.

Add ingredients to a blender or food processor all together or one at a time. Blend to your desired consistency and let stand for 10-15 minutes. This allows the flavors to mingle. It might separate, so before you serve on top of your favorite pasta, give it another quick blend.

This quick and easy recipe makes for a great date night. Enjoy a romantic candle-lit dinner on the porch, sitting at a bistro table, sipping on a nice glass of wine. Or maybe you’d rather sit on the couch playing Mario Kart, sneaking in bites of tasty pasta in between races. Either way, your taste buds will be in summer heaven.

This was written by our contributing writer, Karina Coghlan.