Tuesday, July 13, 2010

Guest blogging ...

Drum roll ...
Here's a post from my first "guest blogger," my daughter Kate. She's an amazing cook and mom to my adorable granddaughter. She's taught me a lot about cooking. Katie's been telling me about her pesto and how easy and delicious it is. I talked her into sharing her recipe here. I found basil at the local farmer's market ~ $1.00 for a huge bunch. That's a fantastic price. Hope you get a chance to try this, especially now that basil is in season!
















Katie says:
My recipe is adapted from Alice Waters' The Art of Simple Food: Notes, Lessons, and Recipes from a Delicious Revolution. I received this lovely cookbook from friends Michael & Hannah. Alice Waters champions eating locally grown food in season ~ and that is what inspired this dish ~ the basil from our CSA (Community Supported Agriculture) has been abundant the last several weeks!

Below is Waters' recipe with my adaptations in parentheses.
Garlic-Bright Pesto
1 bunch basil to yield about 1 cup lightly packed leaves (2 cups)
1 garlic clove (used 6 the first time, but that was a bit much ~ this time I used 4 and that was perfect)
1/4 cup pine nuts, toasted
1/4 cup grated or shaved Parmesan cheese (I used a Romano, Parmesan and Asiago blend)
1/2 cup EVOO (I used just a bit under a 1/2 cup)
salt and pepper to taste

Directions:
In a food processor pulse basil leaves, garlic, pine nuts and cheese until blended. With motor running, pour olive oil in a thin stream until incorporated. Season with salt and pepper.
In addition, I added fresh parsley to the mix ~ really tempered the heady basil. Oh! And I added shelling peas to the whole wheat pasta & water when I was about 2 minutes in the boiling. On the side I served tomatoes drizzled in olive oil and balsamic vinegar.
Bonus! You can make this ahead and keep it in the fridge for several days. Another post coming later this week on pesto: 2 ways!

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