Pesto Testo…

It’s actually been awhile since I’ve made my own pesto. I had forgotten just how important it is to add ingredients one at a time, instead of, say, dumping it all in the food processor and turning it on. So, this batch came out a bit pastier than I would have liked, but I will learn from it. I also added too much garlic up front… it can be tricky to recover from over-garlicking. In addition, I now remember that shredding the Parmesan cheese first is better than just cutting it into chunks. I may have strained the motor on the food processor with that one. Whoops!

Pesto ingredients are pretty basic:

• Basil Leaves
• Olive Oil
• Garlic
• Parmesan Cheese
• Pine Nuts

I also like adding Sun-Dried Tomatoes in there too, but that’s for later batches. With Round #1 now complete, my basil plant has been thinned and trimmed. I have 2 jars of pesto in the freezer, and they will be a very welcome treat come wintertime with some pasta and mushrooms. I have a better recollection of the precision of pesto-making, and of how to improve it for next time. And, it’s still early, my plant is growing strong, so there will be a few other next times this season, definitely…

One of two jars of pesto, now in my freezer.

Puggles, with Basil. One of the results of having the couch in the living room backed up against the main food prep counter in the kitchen… I don’t mind, although some might. I’m a dog person, always will be… Plus, she’s funny too… She knows not to try to get anything that’s on the cutting board, so she’ll just sit and watch me cook. But if it goes onto the counter, then it’s fair game.
Those are our rules.

I call this ‘Warhol Pesto’. This is the exact way the picture came out. Due to the angle of the flash, but I was amused by it.

Lentil Feta Tomato Spread Redux

• Lentils
• Tomatoes
• Feta
• Green Onion
• Olive Oil
• Garlic Powder
• Basil

This is a quick and easy favorite summertime meal around these parts. It’s nice if the ingredients have time to meld beforehand, but sometimes I’ll rinse the beans and put them in the fridge, so they too are nice and cool before assembling. This time, for some silly reason, I added salt to the mix. I wasn’t thinking, obviously, because the feta is quite salty enough. Oh well, that’s how we learn. Still, it was pretty tasty, even if a bit salty for my tastes. It’s odd too, because I don’t normally add salt to things…

We’ve had this in pitas, on pitas, and last night, in wraps. As I said, it’s a tasty quick meal, open to many variations. The pic is from a batch I made in April… Tonight, I plan on making pesto. Yum.

List o’ Meals…

• Lentil Tomato Feta on Pitas (tonight, most likely)
• Grilled Chicken, Rice with Mushrooms and Broccoli (take chicken out of freezer.)
• Salad, with leftover chicken from above
• Variations on the BLT
• Pesto (See how much this batch ends up making… use and freeze.)
• Grilled Eggplant, maybe in an angel hair pasta, maybe just added along the way…

Abundance of Basil…

It’s going to be pesto-making time in a day or two. My basil plant is just taking off and growing like crazy. I love simply going out on the deck and picking some leaves. Because it’s a relatively smallish quantity of leaves, and it’s keep growing as it does after I trim it back (i.e. pick and eat the leaves), I figure I’ll be making pesto quite a bit for the remainder of the summer. Luckily, I found some pine nuts at the grocery store. I was hoping to find them in bulk though. Actually, maybe I’ll see what’s out there on the internets, if anything… I just thought of that. That could very possibly work too. Such a lovely and fragrant plant. I think the only thing I’ll need after I do my first batch will be some small Mason jars… they are the perfect size for when I freeze it. And I love freezing it, because I love using it in the wintertime.

Sunflower Seeds…

I remembered this weekend to pick up some sunflower seeds to have in my salads. A yummy bulk-load of ‘em! It’s been awhile since I’ve added them to my salads… probably because we’ve just started really eating salads as a mainstay during the past month or two. I forgot how much I enjoy the crunchiness and texture that they add. Sometimes I’ll do the nut thing too… almonds are another favorite of mine. Chopped walnuts, too! Pumpkin seeds I’ve enjoyed in there too, when the mood strikes me. It amazes me what a handful of a lil something different can add to a salad, and make it so much different from the last one. So this evening, this was it… sunflower seeds.

Breakfast Pizza… Not just for breakfast anymore

Actually, this is a pic of the slice I just had for dinner. I had a slice for lunch today, too. When there are leftovers in the house, I can be a very boring eater, cuz I can usually very easily go back to what is already made. That, and I hate wasting leftovers. I tend to cook larger portions of things,too, for the explicit purpose of having leftovers for lunches and such. So… Anyway, I wasn’t certain as to how this would be, as a leftover type of food. But, it turned out it was much better than I expected. Always a plus…

This will definitely be something that I will be playing with in the future. We used a prepared crust (I’ve not graduated yet to making my own, though the inkling is there) and put some hollandaise-type of sauce on it. That didn’t really hit the spot with D., but there’s plenty else to try. The toppings were a mixture of garlic, mushrooms, and sun-dried tomatoes. Then, the breakfast meats of sausage and Canadian bacon, all covered in cheese. Not the most nutritious meal, but it was pretty darn tasty. Plus, it was on the birthday boy’s request, so how could I refuse? Oh, and scrambled eggs, how could I forget? We don’t often do breakfast foods such as the above, and this was a fun twist on it. Spinach… I think some spinach would be good in there too.

I just liked the way the toppings looked in this purple bowl. I think it’s the reflection there that caught my eye…

Breakfast Pizzas…

That is what the birthday boy asked for for dinner.  I’ll let you know how they turn out.  It’s not something I’ve made before, although it sounds interesting…  Sort of like a breakfast burrito, but with pizza crust instead of the wrap.  There’ll be scrambled eggs, mushrooms with garlic, sausage or Canadian bacon, and cheese.  Sounds pretty darn good, actually.  As I said, I’ll let you know… 

Ratatouille…

This dinner was pulled out of the freezer this past week. It was one of my favorites to freeze last summer. I loved cooking up the fresh veges and such… and then having the leftovers to bag and freeze. Now that it’s summer again, I figured it was time to finish off what was in the freezer. It was still good and smelled very yummy. Even if I was the only one who ate it for lunches and dinner. I really enjoy it, and if no one else does, well… I know they like it, even though they may not always be in the mood for it. We’ll leave it at that. Anyway, it’s time for some fresh Ratatouille…

Included in the Ratatouille, is:

• Eggplant
• Yellow Zucchini
• Green Zucchini
• Onion
• Garlic
• Tomato

And I’m sure a few other things, that I cannot recall at the moment.  But it’s sure a darn tasty meal, even months later…  And I will definitely be making more of it for freezing this summer. 

Herb Thread…

Here is an Herb Thread that I found that has some good information in it. More specifically, it’s about growing herbs in containers. For those that are interested. Much of my gardening knowledge is found through trial and error. And reading first. Though I don’t always do the reading first…

This year, the only herb I have growing is basil, and it is doing wonderfully. I simply pluck off the leaves and use them on whatever I feel like having at the moment. Tonight, for instance, I had a bagel with basil leaves, tomato slices and cheese. Slightly warmed. I love basil. I’ll chop the leaves and throw it in pretty much anything, when I have the taste for it. I’ve also made pesto on many occasions, and then stored it in those tiny Mason jars in the freezer. I’ve added sun-dried tomatoes to some batches, too. It freezes well, I’ve found, and well, I love pesto.

Thyme can be fun to grow… So can lavender (though my climate has never been well-suited for it, alas). Also, chives (pretty purpley flower heads), rosemary (smush with mortar and pestle and use in cooking - add to olive oil and brush on breads, yum), mint (very overpowering plant, growth-wise, so watch out), cilantro (must get it before it goes to seed)… Dill is supposed to be nice too, although I don’t like it, personally. I am currently considering that it may, in fact, be the vinegar that I do not like in dill products, so that statement may be adjusted in the near future. Sage is another favorite of mine, too. I’ve tried drying some of these, but they end up mostly dusty, instead of actually usable. I probably need to do a bit more reading before I tie them up and let them be.

Basically, I like playing with growing herbs because they are fragrant, I can use some of them in the kitchen, I love basil specifically, and I like playing in the dirt in general. Anything after that, it’s a crapshoot. But it’s an enjoyable and potentially edible crapshoot, so it works for me.

This is what I am waiting for…

My first tomato! I’m trying to be patient. This is my first cherry tomato from last season. I was so excited when they started turning that lovely deep red. I hear about folks plucking tomatoes off of their own plants already, and I am envious. Of course, mine won’t be ready for about 2 more months. Sigh… But, the plants have taken nicely to their containers, it seems. The plants are healthy and growing. I’ve got some peppers I’m trying this year too. I am limited by space, meaning I still need to be able to walk a few steps on the balcony to water and play with my babies. It’s a bit, um, narrow out there right now. My basil this year is already so much more plentiful that last year… cuz, well, I started with a bigger plant this year. But she is looking just marvelous and I have already gotten so many fresh leaves off of her. Last year’s darling was a bit scrawny, but still OK overall, in my book.

I’d grow more indoors if a) there was more direct sun available; b) there was some sill available by the windows; and c) there was no cat. The cat really is the stickler. She has a great fondness for chives, and basically anything green. But I really can’t see getting rid of her for just a few more plants. Most days, anyway…