Let me introduce you to my new favorite way to use up all of that glorious basil in your garden: basil oil!  While I adore pesto (hello you, you, and YOU) I don’t always have all of the goods on hand to make a batch when the basil plants are a’flowin’.

Which is what makes this basil oil such a great option – it only requires one other ingredient aside from basil, and that’s olive oil!

Also?  It couldn’t be easier.  And? It makes your kitchen smell AH-mazing.  Another thing? It’s delicious and makes all of your dishes taste like SUMMER!

So here’s the dealio: you add a boat load of basil and oil to your blender and zip zip zip until it’s all nice and smooth.  Then you add it to a saucepan, cook it for about 10 minutes, and then let it sit.  I’m sure an hour or so would be fine but I started this process around 8:30 p.m. and granny-mama needs her sleep so I just let it sit overnight.  Lastly, you strain out the basil puree and voila!  You have basil oil.

So uhhhh what do you use that basil oil for?  Anything and everything, I say!  But here are some ideas since you asked:

1. Dip grilled bread in it.
2. Saute chicken/fish in it.
3. Use it to start spaghetti sauce/soups/stews/sauces.
4. Drizzle it over a caprese salad.
5. Add Parmesan cheese to it and dip more bread in it.
6. Drizzle it over ricotta spread on bread.

Seriously so many things!

Basil Oil

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Ingredients

• 2 cups fresh basil leaves
• 1 1/2 cups olive oil

Instructions

• In a blender, combine basil leaves and oil.
• Blend until pureed.
• Transfer basil/oil mixture to a small saucepan over medium heat.
• Cook for 10 minutes.
• Remove from heat and let sit for at least one hour to overnight.
• Strain basil pulp from oil using a fine mesh strainer.
• Store basil oil in an airtight container.
• Enjoy!

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