I'm not feeling very creative today, so I'm just going to post a new recipe I tried for dinner tonight. I have a bunch of basil growing in my garden, but I don't normally love pesto - what everybody makes with their extra basil. This recipe has a more complex flavor, which I thought was really good. The main drawback of this recipe is that you probably don't have all the ingredients in your cupboards at home.
Garden Pesto Sauce
makes enough to sauce 2 pounds of pasta
1/3 c pignolis (pine nuts)
2 c packed fresh basil
1/2 c packed fresh parsley
1 lb plum tomatoes, peeled and seeded
1/4 c drained capers
3 anchovy fillets, rinsed and drained
3 garlic cloves, peeled
1/2 t red pepper flakes
1/2 c finely grated Pecorino Romano cheese
1 T lemon juice
1/3 c extra-virgin olive oil
salt and pepper
Pulse pignolis in food processor or blender until finely chopped. Add basil, parsley, tomatoes, capers, anchovies, garlic, pepper flakes, and cheese and blend until smooth. With machine running, add lemon juice, then add oil in steady stream until emulsified. Season with salt and pepper.
Toss pesto with cooked pasta. Add reserved pasta cooking water to sauce if necessary to thin. Serve with a little grated cheese, parsley, and whole pignolis on top.
Pretty tasty, and healthy too! Would also be good on grilled chicken, baked fish or maybe even on sandwiches.
2 comments:
For some reason, my basil is growing like MAD this year! And for some reason I hadn't thought of making pesto with it. I'll have to give it a try!
I'm so impressed. My shake-n-bake pales in comparison.
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