Kale Pesto

There are days -- as much as I like to grocery shop that I just don't want to go. Sometimes those days turn into a week.
Part of it I suppose is that I enjoy the challenge of making a dinner James likes from seemingly nothing or ingredients that don't seem to go together. Kind of a home version of the Food Network's Chopped where I am the only contestant and James the only judge.
Tonight James wanted spaghetti. Okay pasta I had but what to do for the sauce. I found some kale -- maybe a bit past it's prime and some parsley. Searching through my baking ingredients I came upon about 3/4 cup of walnuts. Pesto!
I put the kale, parsley, a couple cloves of garlic, a few pardon peppers I found in the veggie drawer, parmesan cheese, and the walnuts into the food processor. After I gave everything a good chop I poured in the olive oil to form a nice chunky pesto paste.
All I had to do was add a good dollop of pesto to the drained pasta -- along with about 1/2 cup of the pasta cooking water -- and a bit more parmesan, give everything a good stir and serve topped with crisped prosciutto.

Fresh Flavors Of The Season

Bright green for dinner. A tangle of fresh spring asparagus, roasted in the oven served lazily poised atop multi-colored quinoa tossed with fresh herbs (parsley, cilantro, mint) and lemon juice. Slightly bitter radish green pesto layered on top. Super fresh and satisfying like a cool spring day on a plate.

Spring Tastes For Supper

Something simple. Crisp crostini for dinner. If we were having guests this might have been an appetizer selection but tonight the straight from the garden freshness seemed just right for us. I started with those beautiful radishes from our neighbor's yard and turned the leaves (I just couldn't throw them away, they were way too beautiful) into a bright, slightly bitter pesto (radish greens, pecorino cheese, garlic, olive oil, almonds, lemon zest, crushed red chiles --just a pinch --S&P) which topped creamy Pt Reyes Farmstead fresh mozzarella. The radishes themselves I combined with a pea and fava bean purée (blanched fresh peas, double shelled (and quickly boiled) fava beans,  mint leaves, lemon juice, pecorino cheese, olive oil, S&P) on little crisps of garlic rubbed toast. Springy, light, delicious.

Summer's Favorite Sauce

Stretching our backyard harvest into yet another meal I whipped up a batch of one of my favorite garden treats -- arugula pesto. I pulse together grated parmesan (1 cup -- or whatever sharp aged cheese I have in the fridge), arugula (4-5 cups), garlic (3-4 cloves), 3-4 TB lemon juice to taste, S&P, around a half cup of blanched almonds and about 3/4 cup olive oil into a hearty, still a bit chunky paste. An all purpose sauce that keeps well in the fridge or freezer, arugula pesto is great on sandwiches and stirred into soups . Tonight I topped a big bowl of spaghetti and broccoli (boiled with the pasta for the last 4 minutes of cooking time) with a good sized dollop of the piquant co cooking required sauce and a super fresh lightly olive oil fried egg (thanks Foggy).

Quick Pesto Spaghetti

A pile of radishes in the vegetable drawer -- green too bright and fresh to toss into the compost. I whipped up a batch of radish green (and a bit of spinach since I didn't have that many radishes) pesto. Greens, almonds, parmesan cheese, S&P, and olive oil whirled into a paste in the food processor. I wasn't sure what to do with it (I did spread some on a sandwich), But I knew it would come in handy.
Tonight when I looked into what may have been our emptiest fridge ever (I've been out of town for the last 4 nights) I spied that pesto and dinner was made.
I boiled up some of James' favorite spaghetti. Mixed in some pesto and a splash of the pasta cooking water and topped the dish with a pair of olive oil poached eggs. A dash of chili flakes and a sprinkle of peppery cheese and dinner was served. Something easy for a saturday night.

Pesto Spaghetti

Another use for the sauce of the summer -- of the year really. I quickly tossed hot, drained spaghetti with arugula pesto and topped the dish with a loose, olive oil fried egg so James could let the slightly runny yolk add richness to the sauce.

Recipe Of The Year

I don't know how I lived so long without Sara Foster's simple arugula pesto recipe. It's quick, easy, adaptable and delicious. It's a keeper and I keep going back. We've served it on pasta, spread on sandwiches, topping fresh balls of mozzarella. Tonight I tossed steamed cauliflower and homegrown potatoes in the sauce, made with hazelnuts instead of almonds, for a quick picnic salad.

Pesto can seem so dated, so 80's but with arugula instead of basil the whole maybe once tired idea is new again and tastes even better. Simply combine 4 cups of arugula, 4 peeled garlic cloves, 1/2 cup olive oil, 1/2 cup almonds (tonight I used 3/4 cup of blanched hazelnuts), 1 tsp salt, juice of 1 lemon, 1 cup grated parmesan cheese, and 1/2 tsp of black pepper in the food processor. Although Foster chops her "dry" (everything but lemon juice and oil) ingredients first, I just pulse everything together for a chunky, rich, use on everything sauce.

Arugula Toasties

We loved the other night's arugula pesto so much we are finding excuses to use it. Today I topped thick slices of wheat bread with the tasty pesto and slivers of buffalo mozzarella for a quick broiled open-faced sandwich. Delicious.

Pesto Spaghetti

Every now and then (more often than not) I wake up in the middle of the night and flip around for something to watch on TV. Last night I caught Chef Sara Foster of Foster's Market, a cook I have long admired, showing Martha Stewart how to make a green bean salad with arugula pesto.

Through the day I couldn't stop thinking about that pesto. I had all the ingredients in the house. I just wasn't sure how James feels about pesto -- whether an uncooked sauce on his pasta would be a disappointment.

None the less I loaded the food processor with 4 cups of arugula, 1 cup of shredded parmesan cheese, 1/2 cup of slivered almonds, juice of one lemon, 4 peeled cloves of garlic, S&P, and 1/2 cup of olive oil. I pulsed a couple times along the way adding ingredients and gave everything a final whirl to arrive at a chunky texture. I cooked green beans and peas in boiling water and tossed them, along with the drained pasta and a good sized dollop of the sauce for James' dinner.

This pesto is so delicious I may forget all about basil. I will certainly make it again, and I may conveniently forget it is not my recipe. It would be perfect as a dressing for summer salads, spread onto a grilled sandwich, or as a topping for house appetizer favorite caprese salad. It is light and rich and playful all a once.

James went back for seconds.

Vegetables For Dinner

It was getting late and I really didn't have a plan for dinner, so I took a look in the vegetable drawers. I found yellow squash, mushrooms, and half a head of cauliflower. I sliced and chopped everything up into pretty uniform sizes along with an onion I cut into thick wedges and added it to a deep pan along with a good glug of olive oil. I stirred the vegetables around in the oil for about a minute ad then aded in two sliced cloves of garlic and about 1 cup of water. I covered the pan and let the vegetables cook on medium high heat for about 4 minutes. I uncovered the pan and let everything cook -- along with 1/2 a can of chick peas I found in the fridge until the water had cooked down a bit and everything was tender. Next I stirred in about 1/3 cup of pesto sauce and warmed it through. Dinner was served topped with a hefty wedge of delicate burrata cheese and an olive oil fried egg -- fresh from our hen house.