Basil pesto

I haven't eaten pesto in ages and I had forgotten how tasty it is, but lucky for me, my mom had two basil plants she wanted to use up so she made a big batch of pesto. She didn't have any pine nuts on hand so she swapped them with toasted almonds and kept it parve by omitting the Parmesan. I have to say that I wasn't sure how it would taste, but it was absolutely delicious! Here's what you'll need:

2 basil plants or 2 full cups of washed basil
1/2 cup toasted almonds or 1/3 cup pine nuts
1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil
2 to 3 cloves peeled garlic
salt & pepper
1/2 cup kosher Parmesan (optional)

If you're using the pine nuts, you do not have to toast them since they have a very distinct flavor raw, but you can if you want to, if you'll be using the almonds though, it's better to toast them in a frying pan with no oil, just heat the pan then add the nuts and shake them around till the change in color and start to smell nutty, set them aside to cool.
In a food processor add everything but the oil and Parmesan, turn the processor on high then start to drizzle in the oil. Once you have a nice, smooth paste (don't be surprised by the very bright green color) it's ready, you can refrigerate it at this point or add it to your pasta, if using Parmesan, add it in once you're ready to toss the pasta and plate it.
Enjoy!