Sun-dried tomato pesto is not your usual pesto sauce. It’s great for topping sautéed or grilled fish and can be eaten hot or cold! It can also be used as a sauce on penne pasta. However you want to use it will be great! Using sun-dried tomatoes makes this pesto a sauce you can make all year-long as sun-dried tomatoes have a long pantry life and are great for so many recipes they won’t go to waste.

INGREDIENTS:

1 (8.5 ounce) jar of sun-dried tomatoes packed in olive oil*

1 cup (packed) fresh basil leaves

2 garlic cloves

½ cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese

½ teaspoon salt, more to taste

½ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper, more to taste

DIRECTIONS:

1. In a food processor, blend the sun-dried tomatoes and their oil with the basil and garlic just until the tomatoes are finely chopped.

2. Transfer the pesto to a medium bowl and stir in the cheese and salt and pepper. Season with more salt and pepper if needed.

Makes about 1 cup and will last for 1 week if stored in an airtight container.

* If you can’t find oil-packed tomatoes, then soak dry sun-dried tomatoes in extra-virgin olive oil for 12 hours.