Made from Scratch: Sun-dried Tomato Pesto

Last night we had roasted vegetable sandwiches (caramelized onions, portobello mushrooms, zucchini, yellow squash, and goat cheese on sourdough bread) for dinner. For me, the thing that really makes or breaks a good roasted vegetable sandwich is the spread used on the bread. Flavorful pestos are a great option -- and for last might's sandwich I decided to make a sun-dried tomato pesto. To make things easier, I used sun-dried tomatoes packed in oil; if your sun-dried tomatoes aren't packed in oil,  rehydrate them in warm water, drain, and add 1/4-1/2 cup of olive oil to the recipe.

Sun-dried Tomato Pesto (printer-friendly version)
makes one cup (8 ounces)

1 (8.5-ounce) jar sun-dried tomatoes packed in olive oil
2 garlic cloves
1 tablespoon toasted pine nuts
1 cup (packed) fresh basil leaves
1/2 cup freshly grated Parmesan
Fine sea salt and freshly ground black pepper

1. Add the sun-dried tomatoes with their oil, garlic cloves, toasted pine nuts, and fresh basil leaves to the bowl of a food processor. (Alternately, you could use a blender.) Pulse several times until the ingredients are well-blended together. Scrape down the sides of the bowl with a rubber spatula, then add in the grated Parmesan and pulse again to combine. Season the pesto with salt and pepper to taste.
2. Spoon the pesto into a jar with a lid. The pesto can be stored in the fridge for 1-2 weeks.

(adapted from this Giada de Laurentiis recipe)