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Fresh and Simple

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How to make gorgeous gourmet salads

Make a gourmet pesto dressing

Pesto is a favourite kitchen quick fix. It’s traditionally a herb-based sauce from Northern
Italy and it’s very versatile. In this lesson, it’s used as a salad dressing but there are endless
variations. Enjoy it as a simple sauce for pasta and gnocchi or with baby potatoes; add chilli

and serve it over grilled meat; toss it through mayonnaise, Greek yoghurt or cream cheese
for a creamy sauce or dressing; or use it as a fresh topping for simple fish or fish cakes. As
well as adding an extra bit of pizazz to every dish, it’s also fun to make.

Add your own flair

The more traditional ingredients for a pesto are fresh herbs (such as basil), pine nuts,
parmesan cheese, garlic and olive oil, but as with so many kitchen staples, you can easily
make it your own and swop in different ingredients.

Carefully roast the nuts

To start, you’ll need to lightly roast the nuts. You can use almonds, walnuts, pine nuts or any
type of nuts that you fancy. Toss them into a dry pan over medium heat, or spread them flat
onto a baking tray in a medium oven. Remember to keep a very careful eye on the nuts as
they can go from perfectly golden to burnt in just a few seconds. You’ll know they’re ready
when they begin to release a beautiful roasted nut aroma.

Prepare the herbs
In the video tutorial we use watercress to make the pesto, but you could use basil or
parsley, rocket leaves or even frozen peas and mint. Make it your own and experiment with

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