You may find this recipe a bit thick (I usually do) and so may want to increase the amount of olive oil by perhaps another ⅓ cup. Some will instead add a bit of the pasta water just before serving in order to thin it a bit.
2 cups packed fresh basil leaves
2-3 cloves of garlic
¼ cup pine nuts (aka pinoli or piñon)
⅔ cup extra virgin olive oil
Kosher salt and freshly ground pepper, to taste
½ cup freshly grated Pecorino or Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese
Wash and pat dry the basil leaves.
Place the garlic and pine nuts, into a food processor and pulse until chopped fine.
Add the basil and ½ cup of the oil and process until finely chopped. Season with salt and pepper.
If using immediately, mix in the remaining oil and the cheese. If freezing, place in an air-tight container and cover with the remaining oil. Freeze for up to three months, add the cheese after thawing (see note).
I’ve read in more than one recipe that you should not add the cheese if you are going to freeze the pesto as it changes the texture of the cheese. While freezing cheese by itself is certainly not recommended for this reason, I’ve found that I don’t notice it in pesto so I just add the cheese whether or not it’s to be frozen. Do drizzle a layer of oil on top before freezing or refrigerating to help keep the pesto from oxidizing and turning brown.