Basil

Basil is known as l'herbe royale – the royal herb – derived from the Greek word basilikohn, meaning royal.

Basil has a special affinity with eggs, pasta, vegetable soups & sauces but its greatest partner is tomatoes. One of its commonest uses is in making pesto sauce (see below for recipe) used to top pasta or the first topping layer on your pizza base.

Use basil to flavour fish & meat.

It is also sometimes combined with oregano & used as a garnish at the end of cooking time.  Here's an example of a recipe from my Just Snacks blog:
Quick low fat tomato soup
and from my Just Quick Snacks blog a delicious Sausage Apple Spaghetti recipe which uses both oregano & basil.

Used in many Mediterranean dishes, having a strong enough flavour to stand up to garlic. Its pungency intensifies with cooking. An easy way to use basil with chicken breasts:
Chicken stuffed with goat's cheese,sun-dried tomatoes & basil

Fresh basil leaves make them a good addition to salads & the flowers may be used as a garnish.

Check out Vegetable Bolognaise which also uses basil (click title to link).

Pesto Sauce:

In a food processor blend 3 cups fresh basil leaves, 4 cloves peeled garlic, 1 & half cups chopped walnuts and quarter cup parmesan cheese, pour in 1 cup olive oil slowly whilst still mixing, add salt & pepper to taste. Use to stir cooked pasta into.

For other varieties of homemade pesto check out this link which is on my Just Quick Snacks blog
PESTO SAUCES