Preserved Pesto

Summer is coming to an end soon, and I will miss the abundance of it's seasonal vegetables- sweet basil, homegrown tomatoes, crisp corn, squashes, cucumbers ....on and on. If you find any of these items on sale at the store or taking over your garden, preserve them! This doesn't necessarily mean you have to pickle and can the summer veggies. I like to make batches of basil pesto to store in our freezer. There is nothing better than a meal reminiscent of summer in the middle of January.

Stay tuned for more preservation recipes such as tomato sauce, jam and pickles.

PRESERVED PESTO

makes 4 cups

You will need:

1/4 cup walnuts

1/4 cup pine nuts

9 cloves garlic, blanched

5 cups fresh basil leaves, packed

1 teaspoon kosher salt

1 teaspoon fresh black pepper

1 1/2 cups extra-virgin olive oil

1 cup parmigiano-reggiano cheese, freshly grated*

To blanch the garlic:

Cover garlic in a saucepan with water by 1 inch. Bring to a boil over high heat then immediately drain. Let garlic cool to room temperature. I think this is the key to good pesto!

*Try grating the cheese in the processor before you start the pesto. Take it out while you make the recipe.

Process walnuts, pine nuts, and garlic in a food processor for 30 seconds.

Add basil leaves, salt and pepper.

Slowly pour the olive oil through the feed tube while the processor is running.

Puree until the pesto is smooth.

Add the parmigiano-reggiano and puree for 1 minute more.

Pour in a portion size (1 cup) freezer container.

Coat with a thin film of olive oil.

Freeze until you crave fresh pesto on a cold winter day.

This is the base for the pesto in Pesto, asta and Peas.

Catering Gig #2

Peachtree Planning invited me back to feed the office. I stuck with the chicken club and ham with pimento cheese sandwiches for the first lunch but added a few items.

Pasta, Peas and Pesto

I modified pesto recipes with recommendations from several of my fav cooks. The result is fresh sauce that can you can easily transform into a dressing, sauce or spread. The spinach keeps the pesto green.

Pesto:

You will need:

less than 1/4 cup walnuts

less than 1/4 cup pine nuts

4 garlic cloves

2 1/2 cups basil leaves

salt and pepper

3/4 cup olive oil

1/2 cup Parmesan cheese

10 ounce package frozen chopped spinach

3 tablespoons lemon juice

1 cup mayo

Process nuts and garlic in a food processor

Add basil, salt and pepper

Drizzle (slowly) olive oil while processor is running until finely pureed

Add Parmesan and pulse

Squeeze dry the thawed spinach

Add dried spinach, lemon juice

Add mayo and continue to puree

Store in fridge with a layer of olive oil and plastic wrap

Freeze unused portions

*the amount of mayo really depends on the consistency you need.

Pasta:

You will need:

3/4 pound fusilli

3/4 pound bow-tie pasta

pesto from above

1/2 cup Parmesan

1 1/2 cups frozen peas

1/3 cup pine nuts, toasted*

*I buy them already toasted at Trader Joe's

Boil pasta in salted water

Cool pastas to room temperature

Add pesto mixture- (you may need to add olive oil to the pesto to thin it out)

Add Parmesan, peas, pine nuts,

Mix well and season to taste

Serve at room temperature

Roasted Red Pepper Sandwiches

Like the pesto above, these marinated roasted red peppers are wonderful to keep in the fridge to add in sandwiches and salads.

Roasted Red Peppers:

Preheat oven to 500 degrees

Place whole red peppers on a baking sheet

Don't oil them!

Bake for 30 to 40 minutes until charred and wrinkled

Turn twice during the roasting

Remove from the oven and immediately wrap in foil

(this creates a steam room that will allow you to easily remove the skin)

Wait about 30 minutes until they are cooled enough to handle

Mix together 2 Tbsp olive oil, 1 Tbsp balsamic vinegar, 2 minced garlic cloves, S&P

Remove the stems, skins and seeds from the peppers

Try to keep any roasting juice

Cut into strips

Place in marinade

To assemble the sandwiches:

Cut a ciabatta loaf in half

Spread bottom half with goat cheese

Layer peppers, thinly sliced red onion and basil leaves

Chocolate Chip Cookies

Thanks to Gwyneth Paltrow, I have discovered the BEST crispy but soft, thin, old-fashioned chocolate chip cookies recipe. The best part is that you don't have to use a clunky mixer - a mixing bowl and wooden spoon are the only utensils

You will need:

2 cups all-purpose flour

1 tsp baking soda

1 tsp salt

2 sticks salted butter, room temperature

3/4 cup granulated sugar

3/4 cup dark brown sugar, firmly packed

1 tsp water

1 tsp vanilla

2 large eggs, beaten

2 cups semisweet chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 350 degrees

Whisk flour, soda and salt in a bowl

Mix butter with wooden spoon in another bowl to lighten it

Add sugars to butter and mix well

Add water, vanilla and eggs to butter-sugar mixture

Stir in flour mixture until just combined

Fold in chocolate chips

Drop cookies 2 inches apart

Bake for 8-10 minutes, rotate sheet after 4 minutes