When I was a child my mother used to grow herbs in our garden. My mum’s name for this patch of the garden was the rockery. The other day I was talking to mum about the herbs course I have recently joined online. Each week we learn about a new herb and the benefits of it. A few weeks ago we learnt about lemon balm.
My mum was then reminded of the rockery in our garden and she told me that was one of the herbs she used to grow. Unfortunately my mum wasn’t the main cook in house. My dear old Dad was the head chef in the household.
Dad loved to cook and mum enjoyed growing the food. It was quite a good partnership. When I asked mum what she thought Dad cooked with the lemon balm she couldn’t remember. Either can I but as I was making this dish I felt it would be one my Dad would have tried and approved too. That means I had to share it with you.
Do you have a favourite herbs and if so, what is it and what do you use it in? Let me know in the comments below and please don’t forget to like and follow me.
Serves 4
Equipment needed
- Chopping board
- Sharp knife
- Baking trays x 2
- Measuring Jug
- Food processor
Ingredients
- Red pepper x 2 large
- Tomatoes x 4 – 6 large
- Basil x 1 large handful
- Rocket x 1 handful
- Lemon balm x 1 small handful
- Olive oil x 1 – 2 tbsps plus extra for drizzling
- Pine nuts x 100g
- Salt x 1 – 2 pinches for tomatoes and sauce
- Pepper to your taste
Method
- Preheat the oven to 200º and put the baking tray in at the same time.
- Once the oven is preheated take the baking tray out and add the tomatoes in.
- Then drizzle over with olive oil and season with salt and pepper to taste.
- Place in the oven for 30 – 40 minutes or until the tomatoes start to burst with juice.
- Remove from the oven and leave to cool.
- Leave the oven on and add the basa fillets to another baking tray.
- Put the baking tray in the oven and cook for about 15 – 20 minutes depending on your oven.
- When the flesh of the fish flakes away from itself its cooked.
- If it doesn’t flake away from itself then put back into the oven for another couple of minutes.
- Remove the fish from the oven.
- When the tomatoes have cooled, add them to the food processor along with the basil, lemon balm, rocket olive oil, pine nuts and a little more salt and pepper.
- Blend for a good five minutes and serve with a cooked pasta of your choice and the basa fillets!
Lemon Balm and Tomato Pesto with Basa Fillets was a hit our house. It’s an easy dish to cook. The meal can be made in advance and frozen too. Plus it can be batch cooked. It’s really easy to make double of this dish and freeze it. I ate it the next day as leftovers and it was still as yummy as the night before. However you decide to eat this dish, as always, please enjoy. Thank you xxx
Googies Kitchen Life 