Pesto sauce with cashew nuts

Home-made pesto is SO MUCH NICER than the commercial ready-made ones, and it is SO EASY to make!!!! I first made it in Florence during a family holiday years ago, and haven't stopped since. You can make a big batch and store for the week to use in all sorts of recipes. Pesto isn't only great with pasta - it also works really well in stuffed jacket potatoes, as a sauce for french beans, a spoonful in tomato soup gives the soup a fabulous tasty turn, and a teaspoon in home-made guacamole is a worthy substitute for fresh coriander... My sons even like eating my pesto spread generously on warm toast. Tradutional pesto sauce uses pine nuts but actually other nuts work really well too, especially cashews becauae their sweetness combines beautifully with the peppery and intense flavour of fresh basil. Keeps well in the fridge for a week.