Summer 2003 Meal Planning and Recipes

[jessikate]

Let's get together and help each other plan healthful and delicious meals. Whether you're trying to lose some weight or just wanting to eat more healthfully, this is the spot for you. Main dish recipes are welcome by themselves, but it would be great for the clueless among us (ME!) if you could talk about side dishes, too.

Please save me from pizza and hotdogs!

[jessikate]

Tonight's dinner:

Grilled Marinated Portobellos

4 Portobello mushroom caps (about 3" diameter or larger)
2 cloves of garlic
2 sprigs of thyme, stripped and chopped (about 2 tsp)
2 TB minced parsley
1/2 c. olive oil
freshly ground black pepper
salt as needed

Combine garlic, thyme, parsley, olive oil, and pepper and smear on mushrooms. Set aside to marinate for at least 30 minutes (the longer, the better). Meanwhile, heat your grill (I used a stovetop grill, but this works wonderfully on a "real" grill or in a saute pan). When grill is hot, place mushrooms on grill (rounded side down) and sprinkle with salt. Turn 90 degrees after a few minutes if you'd like grill marks. When moisture appears on the underside of the mushroom, turn over and grill a minute or two longer. Remove from heat and slice thinly. Serve with summer veggie salad and couscous.

Summer Veggie Salad

1 bell pepper (red, orange, or yellow. not green!)
1 small zucchini or yellow squash
2 small tomatoes
1 ball fresh mozzarella
2 TB thinly sliced basil
2 TB olive oil
2 tsp balsamic vinegar
salt and pepper to taste


Cut veggies and mozzarella into 1/2 inch cubes. Add oil, vinegar, basil, and salt & pepper. Toss to coat veggies with dressing.

Couscous

1.5 cups water
1 cup couscous
1/2 tsp salt
1 TB minced herbage (DH suggests tarragon, I think oregano or savory would work as well)


Bring water to boil, remove from heat. Stir in all other ingredients. Cover and let stand 5 minutes. Fluff with a fork and serve.

YUM!!!

[kaje62]

Amount Measure Ingredient -- Preparation Method
-------- ------------ --------------------------------
2 1/4 cups sifted flour
1/2 cup sifted powdered sugar
1 cup butter
8 eggs
3 1/2 cups granulated sugar
1 cup lemon juice
4 teaspoons grated lemon zest
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 tablespoon unsifted flour

Sift together sifted flour and powdered sugar.
Cut in butter until mixture resembles crumbs
Pat in bottom of 13 x 9 inch baking pan
Bake at 350 degrees until golden brown.

Beat eggs with granulated sugar and stir in lemon juice, zest, baking powder and unsifted flour.
Mix well.
Pour over crust.
Bake at 350 degrees 45 minutes.

[browneyedsol]

...and a good way to get a smokin' hottie bod like mine!

Go to the Co-op.

Buy some Soy Delicious Peanut Butter Chocolate frozen dessert.

Buy some Michael Season's BBQ potato chips.

When the kids are in bed, park your @ss on line and eat out of the container and the bag.

Decide this is excessive and put dessert in bowl and scoop some almonds, sunflower seeds and peanuts on top. Polish it quickly.

Finish the bag of chips by shaking and dumping from the bag into your chompin' yapper.

YUM!

:thumb

[Kim]

...and a good way to get a smokin' hottie bod like mine!

:eek :D I tried that and DID NOT end up with a smokin' hottie bod. What did I do wrong?

The Portabello recipe looks so yummy!
---------------------------------------------------------
Here's my addition (taken directly from the Oprah show):

One package goat cheese (mash it up with a fork, and put on a platter or shallow bowl)

Mix together:
Sundried Tomato
Chopped up olives (Kalamata are good)
Olive Oil
Balsamic Vinegar
Salt&Pepper

Pour over goat cheese. Serve atop pita wedges. Super-delicious!
-------------------------------------------------

My version of pizza:

One thin-crust pizza dough (pre-baked)

Spread olive oil and minced garlic on the crust and add:
Sliced Tomato
Goat Cheese
Caramelized Onion
Thick layer of Spinach
Some mozarella
Pine Nuts

Bake at 375 until cheeses melt.

[Sara Mama]

Great if you have an herb garden.

Gather up a bunch of herbs ( I think 1 cup or so)
Wash, dry and mince

Cook Orzo -- maybe a cup uncooked

In a bowl put some olive oil (3T maybe) and vinegar (1T), salt and pepper, and the minced up herbs, stir it well.

Put the cooked, drained orzo in the bowl with the herbs, oil etc.

Stir.

Add some cheese if you like (grated mozzarella, parmesan, or cubed/crumbled feta all work well)

Eat!

To round out the meal, serve with a green salad and fruit for dessert

[kaje62]

i wanted to bring food to saramama and nostrow so i whipped this up. sara asked me for the recipe so I thought I would share it with you all.

i rarely follow recipes
but this is an idea of what i did

French organic lentils
cooked with bay leaves
cleaned first

sauté olive oil with in this order (I don't measure) garlic, garlic chives and onions, carrots and celery

add greens (I did beet greens, collards and kale) to the cooking lentils

add dab of dry mustard, dab of cayenne to stir fry, salt, dab of braggs and lotsa black pepper,
once greens are bright green remove and drain from lentils and chop fine and add to stir fry, sauté awhile and then add big can of crushed tomatoes to stir fry until hot
remove bay leaves
and then put the stir fry into the cooking lentils
mix all together and cook till lentils are tender

so sweet to see my son eating kale and saying, mama i love this.

[mamarsupial]

all of these recipes came from the smith & hawken "gardeners' community cookbook" by victoria wise. a friend gave me a copy a few years ago and its become one of my favorite cookbooks for seasonal produce! there are some other amazing recipes in here (light horseradish carrots, lime cilantro chicken and pasta, garlic rosemary mashed potatoes, and 'garden celebration' risotto with basil-walnut pesto, to name a few). god forbid i ever decide to try any of the desert recipes!

so, here are a few of our favorite greens recipes. greens are SOOOOOO good for you. try and cook them at least once a week!:


greens sautéed with garlic, raisins, and pine nuts (what i brought to kj's blessing way)

2 large bunches hearty greens (mustard, turnip, kale, collard, broccoli rabe) - about 1 1/2 lbs
1/4 cup raisins (black or golden)
3 tbs olive oil
7 large cloves garlic, minced
1/2 cup pine nuts, lightly toasted
1 small red onion, thinly sliced
1/4 tbs salt
3 tbs balsamic vinegar

bring 1/2 cup water to a boil over medium heat. add greens, stirring down as you add them. when all have been added and are well wilted, add the raisins. partially cover and reduce heat to medium. stir occationally, adding more water as needed, until greens are tender (about 20 mins). meanwhile, combine oil and garlic in a skillet and cook over medium heat for 3-4 minutes. stir in the toasted pine nuts, remove from heat, set aside. in a small bowl, toss together the onion and salt, set aside. when the greens are cooked, pour off any remaining liquid. stir in the vinegar, garlic oil, pine nuts, and onions. enjoy!


soba noodles w/ swiss chard, ginger, and pine nuts (a staple in our house!)

1 tbs olive oil
2 cloves garlic, minced (we usually use 4-6 cloves!)
2 teaspoons ginger (again, we tend to double it, at least)
3/4 lb swiss chard, cut crosswise into 1/2 inch strips, washed and drained
(we have used collards, kale, etc...to fine effect)
2 tbs soy (i tend to use 1 tbs soy and 1 tbs braggs amino-acids - thanks kj for getting me hooked on that stuff!)
8 oz soba noodles
2 tbs pine nuts, toasted
freshly ground black pepper
crushed red pepper
1/2 cup grated parmesan (or asiago, etc)

heat oil in a large sauté pan (we use our wok). add the garlic and ginger and stire over medium heat until beginning to brown (about 2 mins). add the chard (or other greens) and stir to mix. cook until greens are wilted and tender (the cookbook says 20 mins, but in the wok it only takes about 5-10 mins). meanwhile, boil some water and cook the noodles until tender (3 mins or so). drain (the recipe says to reserve 1/2 cup of the liquid, and to stir it in with the chard...but we never remember to do this and it still turns out fine). place noodles in serving bowls, top with chard and 'pot liquor' (the sauce at the bottom of your pan or wok), sprinkle with pine nuts, black pepper to taste, a pinch of crushed red pepper, and the cheese (if using).


kale pie (reminds me of spanakopita)

one 10 inch easy tart crust (oh my - email me if you want this specific crust recipe! my fingers are getting tired ;) )
4 cups coarsely chopped kale leaves, washed and drained (about 8 oz) (you could prolly use any greens for this!)
1 tbs olive or vegetable oil
2 small onions, finely chopped
3 cloves garlic (or more), minced
2 large eggs
1 cup crumbled feta cheese
1/2 cup half-and-half
1/2 tsp salt

(crust should be done ahead of time). preheat oven to 375. bring a large pot of water to a boil. add kale (or greens), stir to submerge, and cook over high until wilted and tender, but still bright green (about 3 mins). drain and set aside. heat oil in medium sauté pan. add onions and garlic and sauté over medium heat, stirring, until just golden brown (6 mins). remove from heat and set aside. break eggs into a large bowl and beat lightly. add the feta and half-and-hald, kale, onion mixture, salt. stir to mix and pour into prebaked crust. bake until the center of the pie is firm and golden across the top (40-50 mins). let cool.

[jessikate]

Thought I'd give this a bump here - we've got some new people who I'd love to hear from!

Spinach and Mushroom Lasagna

1 package no-boil lasagna noodles
1 28 oz. can tomato puree
1 onion, diced
lots of garlic, minced or put through a garlic press
1 bunch spinach
1 package mushrooms, sliced
herbs, salt, & pepper to taste
8 oz ricotta
8 oz shredded mozzarella
1 egg
8 oz parmesan, shredded
1/2 c. chopped parsley
Olive oil

Heat olive oil in a large-ish, deep pan and toss in onion and mushroom. Cook until mushroom has exuded all moisture and started to brown a bit. Add garlic and cook briefly (just until you can smell it). Add tomato and 1/2 can of water. Bring up to simmer and allow to simmer while you're getting everything else ready. Maybe throw in a bay leaf or two, some oregano, basil, fennel, whatever floats your boat.

Blanch/wilt the spinach, drain, squeeze out as much water as you can. Chop and set aside. Mix together ricotta, parsley, and egg, and a handful of parmesan.

Take your pan and put a bit of sauce in the bottom. Put in a layer of noodles, then sauce, spinach, ricotta mixture, mozzarella. Noodles, sauce, etc. etc., finishing with noodles, sauce, mozzarella, parmesan.

I cover and freeze it at this point, thawing before cooking.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Put covered lasagna on sheet pan, in oven for 1/2 hour or so, until hot in the middle. Uncover and bump the temp up 25 degrees or so, cook until nicely browned. Remove from oven, allow to rest 20 minutes or so. Slice, eat.

Off to pull a pan of this out of the freezer... :drool

[Sara Mama]

Mmmhm Lasagana!

Okay here are a couple of recipes.

Grilled Potatoes
Wash a bunch of potatoes
Cut to 1 to 2" size pieces
Parboil (ie almost cook them all the way)
Drain
Rinse with cold water (to stop them cooking further)

Soak some wood skewers in water (can buy at the coops)

In a big baggy or plastic tub with a lid put some variation of the following:
Olive Oil
Vinegar (balsamic etc)
Chopped (minced) garlic and onion
Lots of herbs -- whatever you have fresh
The potatoes

"Marinate the potatoes" in the baggy, tossing it around frequently
Leave in the fridge until ready to cook

Put potatoes on the skewers
Put them on a hot grill
Turn frequently
Serve as is or with cheese

Now for the leftovers

This is a great focaccia recipe I found, it calls for 2 medium potatoes (1 lb) cooked. I use my left over grilled potatoes above


Facaccia di Patate alla Genovese Potato Focaccia from Genoa
from In Nonna's Kitchen by Carol Field awesome book!!

1 lb potatoes
1 cup milk
2.5 t active dry yeast (I use fresh, bulk from the co-op)
3 C + 1 T flour
2t sea salt
10-12 fresh sage, finely chopped (or basil or rosemary)
6 T olive oil plus more for drizzling
1.5 - 2 t coarse sea salt

Potatoes - mash, rice or pulverize in your food processor - bring to ROOM TEMPERATURE (imporant if they are from last night and have been in the fridge....)

Warm the milk to 105-115 (for packaged yeast) or 95-105 for fresh co-op yeast
Put the yeast in the milk, whisk and let rest for @10 min until creamy looking

On your work surface, dump the potatoes, flour, salt and chopped herb
Mix together
Make a well in the center of the pile
Pour in some of the milk/yeast mixture then some oil (alternate them), adding more as you work them into the dry ingrediants

Knead until soft and elastic about 8-10 minutes (james helps a lot with this)
Roll into a ball
Put the dough ball into an oiled bowl
Cover tightly with plastic wrap
Let rise until doubled -- about an hour

Oil a pan (cookie sheet, what not)
Put the dough ball on the cookie sheet
Press it out into a flat, round shape (about 1" thick)

Put some oil on your fingers
Push them into the dough, making "dimples"
Sprinkle the coarse sea salt on the dough

Cover with a kitchen cloth
Let rise until half-doubled (about 30 min)

Sprinkle olive oil on the dough
Bake at 400 for about 25 min

Ideally, you have a baking stone (I don't) that you keep in the oven, so it is hot and you put the pan right on the baking stone (if my husband asks, I want one for my bday!)

[kaje62]

Decadent French Toast Souffle

4 large or 5 medium croissants, baked
8 oz cream cheese, softened
1/2 cup butter, softened
3/4 cup maple syrup, divided
10 eggs
3 cups half and half
1 tsp ground cinnamon
powdered sugar
chopped pecans (if desired)

Sauce:
1/2 cup butter
1/2 cup maple syrup

In food processor, coarsely chop croissants. Distribute evenly in
greased 9x13 inch casserole dish. Combine cream cheese, butter, and 1/4
cup maple syrup. Spread evenly over croissants. In large bowl, beat
eggs, 1/2 cup maple syrup, and half and half. Pour over mixture in
casserole. Sprinkle with cinnamon. Cover and refridgerate overnight.

Preheat oven to 350. Uncover and bake 45-50 min or until golden. In
small saucepan, heat sauce ingredients (1/2 cup butter and 1/2 cup maple
syrup). Pour over warm souffle. (I'd probably cut servings and then
pour some sauce over each plate) Sprinkle with powdered sugar and
chopped pecans, if desired.

Top Secret Recipes version of Starbucks® Gingerbread Latte®



Gingerbread Syrup

2 cups water

1 1/2 cups granulated sugar

2 1/2 teaspoons ground ginger

1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract



1/2 cup fresh espresso

8 ounces milk, steamed (with a little foam)



Garnish

whipped cream

ground nutmeg





1. Make the gingerbread syrup by combining water, sugar, ginger, cinnamon and vanilla in a medium saucepan. Be sure the pan is not too small or the mixture could easily bubble over.

2. Bring mixture to a boil then reduce heat and simmer syrup, uncovered, for 15 minutes. Remove the syrup from the heat when it's done and slap a lid on it.

3. Make a double shot of espresso (1/2 cup), using an espresso machine. Use the machine to steam 8 ounces of milk, or heat up the milk in the microwave if your machine does not foam and steam milk.

4. Make your latte by first adding 1/2 cup espresso to a 16-ounce cup. Add 1/4 cup gingerbread syrup, followed by the steamed milk. Stir.

5. Top off the drink with a dollop of whipped cream, and a sprinkle of nutmeg. (http://www.topsecretrecipes.com)



Makes 1 grande latte (16 ounces).

[mamabuzzybee]

Hi all--I'm a new one around here. We're in Madison. I went to a friend's farm a few weeks ago and ate this spectacular rice so I thought I'd share

1T olive oil
2C. chickpeast (cooked fresh) OR 1 16oz can of chickpeas, drained
1 1/2T chopped sundried tomatoes (packed in oil, oil drained)
1/3C fresh parsley, chopped
2.5-3C cooked brown rice
1t. fresh basil or 1/4 dried (this amount is really subtle, so try some more if you like a more robust flavor)
1t. fresh oregano or 1/4 dried (ditto about the amount)
salt & pepper to taste
2T. butter
1/4C. grated Parm cheese

Heat olive oil in large skillet, add chickpeas, sundried tomatoes and parsley--cook 3 min.

Add rice, basil, oregano, salt and pepper, toss well, cook til hot (10 min if rice was cold, only a minute or so if rice is coming right from your cooking pot)

Cut butter into bits and mix into rice. Sprinkle parm cheese and serve.

And this stuff is so very good!!! I made it two nights after I got the recipe. I'm new to more wholesome cooking (I'm a northern WI girl by birth, raised on casseroles, meat and potatoes). I really love this recipe--I'm definitely going to try it out on my family up north, though I'll probably add some chicken. ;) My partner thought it was too mellow tasting and recommend that we have it next time with something more robust tasting. I'd agree, but I love the comfort of mellow food, and this is a bit healthier than buttered noodles. :)

Thanks for the great kale recipes--we were discussing at the meal where I got this recipe (which was in a cookbook, I apologize that I didn't write down the name)--anyway we were discussing kale and the lack of good recipes that we knew, so I'm going to forward this on, so thanks!

:)

[jessikate]

:w Lea! That chickpea dish sounds fabulous! Too bad I just put in a different kind of beans to soak, or I'd make that tomorrow, LOL.

Where in N. WI are you from? I'm from Ashland.

To add to the unhealthy but tasty direction KJ steered us in, here's my favorite chocolate chip cookie recipe:

Thick and Chewy Chocolate Chip Cookies
from America's Test Kitchen/Cook's Illustrated

2 cups + 2 TB all-purpose flour
1/2 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. salt
12 TB (1.5 sticks) unsalted butter, melted and cooled
1 cup packed brown sugar
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1 large egg + 1 egg yolk
2 tsp. vanilla
1-1.5 cups chocolate chips

1. Adjust oven racks to upper and lower middle positions, and preheat to 325 degrees. Grease baking sheets or line with parchment paper

2. Combine flour, baking soda, and salt in a small bowl.

3. Mix together butter and sugars, add egg, egg yolk, and vanilla. Stir in dry ingredients, add chocolate chips.

4. Drop tablespoon-sized balls of dough on your baking sheet (I use a #40 scoop from a restaurant-supply store). Bake 13-15 minutes, cool on a rack.

Delicious!

[mamabuzzybee]

Hey Jess--I recognize you (I snuck a look at your pics)! I think I emailed you personally earlier this week when I saw that you were from Ashland! Small crazy world. I'm from Odanah, but graduated from Ashland in 96. How old is your kiddo? Email me! :) Lea

[battymomma]

brown--like your quick healthy version best so far! so little effort and one can read and type while preparing the meal.

mmm, chickpeas...keep 'em coming!

our fav quickie in the summer--

1 lb cooked pasta
pkg of feta cheese
can of blk olives
artichoke hearts

mix all together and eat

[mamarsupial]

another quickie:

fresh tomatoes, chunked
fresh basil, chopped
fresh mozzerella, chunked
olive oil
balsamic vinegar
sea salt

ambrosia!

[jessikate]

Sunny Carrot Soup

You will need:
2 leeks
lots of carrots (at least 1#)
2" piece of ginger
1 clove garlic
2-3 TB orange juice concentrate
salt & pepper
a little cream or half&half (optional)
water
butter

Heat your soup pot and throw in a tablespoon or two of butter to melt.

trim and halve the leeks lengthwise. Wash in cold water to get out all the sand. Slice thin and throw in pan.

Cut carrots into fairly small pieces and throw in pot also. Mince or grate ginger, mince garlic and throw them it. Cover the pot and let everything cook for a few minutes.

Add enough water to cover, cover partway, and simmer until carrots are tender. Puree. Stir in orange juice concentrate, cream (if you want), and season to taste with salt and pepper.

This is good hot or at room temperature. We had it for dinner tonight with whole wheat bread. Yummy!

[Snow]

ummm jessikate, still awaiting the promised choc angel food cake recipe...

*drooling*

[mamarsupial]

well, this weekend could be our last with no plans before the babe is here...SO, i'm baking a ton of bread and muffins to freeze. here is one of my favorite breads:

OATMEAL MOLASSES

(adapted from the recipe for Rabbit Hill Inn Oatmeal-Molasses Bread from 'Dairy Hollow House Soup & Bread' by Crescent Dragonwagon - don't you just love that name? - my changes are listed below in red )

2 cups boiling filtered water
1 cup quick cooking oatmeal or coarse ground oatmeal
1 1/2 tbs butter
1 tbs dry active yeast
1/2 cup lukewarm filtered water
1/2 cup blackstrap molasses
2 tsb salt
4 1/2-5 cups unbleached all purpose flower or use an equal mix of whole wheat and whole wheat pastry flour

other additions/changes: add 1/2 cup b grade maple syrup
add 1 cup chopped walnuts
add the maple syrup, but omit the molasses and walnuts, for a nice, plain oatmeal bread

directions: in a large bowl, pour the boiling water over the oatmeal and butter. let stand 30 mins. in a small bowl, sprinkle the yeast over the lukewarm water ( i usually mix the maple syrup into the water, to give the yeast a real boost). let stand 5-10 mins. add the yeast, molasses, and salt (and walnuts, if using) to the oatmeal mixture and stir well. stir in enough flour to make a kneadable dough. knead on a lightly floured surface until smooth and elastic, about 8 mins. oil a bowl, add dough, turn to coat. cover with a clean cloth and let rise until doubles (about 90 mins). oil two 9x5 loaf pans. punch down dough and divide in half. split and move to pans. cover, let rise until doubles again, about 40-60 mins. towards the end of the second rise, preheat oven to 375. bake bread for about 35 mins. turn loaves out to cool on a wire rack. eat with loads of sinful butter and maybe some honey too. yum.

[jessikate]

Alright, Snow... Here it is:

Chocolate Lover's Angel Food Cake
from The Cake Bible by Rose Levy Berenbaum

1/4 c. + 1 TB (or 1 oz.) unsweetened cocoa (Dutch Processed)
1/4 c. (2 oz) boiling water
2 tsp. vanilla
1 3/4 c. (12.25 oz) sugar
1 c. (3.5 oz) sifted cake flour
1/4 tsp. salt
2 c. (17 oz) egg whites (about 16 large)
2 tsp. cream of tartar

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F

In a medium bowl, whisk boiling water into cocoa until smooth, then add vanilla. Set aside.

In another medium bowl, combine 1/4 c. sugar, flour, and salt, and whisk to combine.

In large bowl, beat egg whites until frothy, then add cream of tartar. Beat until soft peaks begin to form, and add remaining 1 1/2 c. sugar gradually. Beat until stiff peaks form and mixture is shiny.

Remove 1 c. egg whites and stir into cocoa mixture.

Dust flour mixure over remaining egg whites 1/2 c. at a time and gently fold in. Fold in cocoa and egg white mixture.

Pour into tube pan and place in oven. Bake 40 minutes or until done (cake tester inserted in center comes out clean). Cool upside down, supported on a wine bottle or something else that fits in the hole in the pan. This keeps the cake from falling as it cools.

Remove from pan, and serve with whipped cream and raspberry sauce (my choice, anyhow. You serve as you like)



I need a new copy of this book... mine is falling apart at the binding. The sign of a great cookbook! I have a bread recipe to contribute, too, but have to get ready to leave now. Will do it later.

[jessikate]

Pesto!

Basil leaves
olive oil
garlic
pine nuts (or walnuts if you prefer)
parmesan cheese
salt if needed

Put basil, garlic, and nuts in food processor, and process until finely chopped. With machine running, drizzle in olive oil until it's a nice texture (sort of a paste).

Grate your parmesan and stir in. Taste and add salt if you need it.

Toss with hot pasta (and a little pasta cooking water), eat on bread (how I introduced it to DH), use your imagination.

YUM!

[kaje62]

1/2 cup orange juice
2/3 cup peanut or almond butter
1/3 cup Mrs. Braggs, tamari or shoyu
2 tablespoons lemon juice
1 cayenne or jalapeno pepper
1/4 cup maple syrup
4 cloves garlic
1 ts ginger

[kaje62]

4 packed cups fresh basil leaves - no stems (can do 1/2 spinach)
6 large cloves fresh garlic
1/2 cup pinenuts, walnuts, almonds or combination
3/4 cup fresh grated Parmesan
3/4 cup olive oil
Salt and pepper to taste

Combine in blender, pushing together to work into smooth paste. Toss with hot drained pasta or spoon onto hot gnocchi.

[Sara Mama]

Always toast the nuts first - -ie cook on low in a dry (ie no spray etc) fry pan until lightly browned and you start to smell a good nutty smell.

Also - use sea salt, you can buy it in bulk at the co-op and it has a wonderful flavor. And be generous with it.


Things to add to the pesto -

Lemon juice / lemon oil / grated lemon zest -- this will give it a nice bright flavor

Olives - mmmmhhhmm

Roasted Red Peppers -- mmmmmm


When freezing --
Do not add the cheese if you are freezing the pesto. It's bad for the cheese' texture etc. (can't remember what else Lynn Rosetta Casper said)

Here's the link (http://mail.publicradio.org/site/PageServer?pagename=reg_welcome) for the Spendid Table e-newsletter and
here's her recipe for pesto (http://www.splendidtable.org/recipes/sauce_pesto.html)

[kaje62]

I made pesto this week and added a bunch of kale to it and it tastes great. nice way to use up kale and get more b vitamins.

[smeta]

yum yum, lots of good things to try here!

Mamar - you asked me for this recipe ages ago, at Saramama's baby shower...

Broccoli Salad
6 to 8 servings

1 bunch (1 ½ lbs.) broccoli, finely chopped
1 small red onion, chopped
1 cup raisins
1 cup sunflower seeds
10 strips bacon, crisply fried and crumbled (optional)

Dressing:
1 cup mayonnaise
¼ cup sugar
2 tablespoons vinegar

1. In a large bowl, combine salad ingredients.
2. In a small bowl, combine dressing ingredients; blend well.
3. Just before serving, stir dressing into salad.

[Snow]

ok, it's Tues night, 10:45 pm and about 35 degrees. So I went outside and pulled up all the basil and it's now sitting in my sink and all over my counters. I need to blend it up asap and put it in ice cube trays but - I don't have any olive oil or garlic! Can I do it w/ canola oil? Do I just toss the leaves and canola oil and nuts all into the blender? Then is it cool to just freeze it all? I won't be needing it for some time. thx!

[kaje62]

Snow, there are mixed reviews on freezing basil. I would not use canola but some say you can freeze it with water in ice cube trays or freezer bags. But......some say it will turn black. I say put it in a bag throw it in the fridge and go to bed and get olive oil tomorrow. And do the real deal. That is my opinion.

Also Kate has a great recipe of Colins for Basil, Tomatoes, Salt and Garlic in the Blender that you don't have to cook. It is so so good. Can't remember the name of it right now. If I get it from her, I will post it.

or you can give me all your basil. j/k:D

[Snow]

ok, sounds good - I'll bundle it all up for the night and get real olive oil tomorrow. But if I don't freeze it, how will it keep for the winter?

[kaje62]

oh you have to freeze it after you do the pesto or just the olive oil and basil.

or are you asking about the tomatoe thing. You could just make a bit of both or a bunch of both. I think the tomatoe thing would last a couple weeks in the fridge. Maybe you can freeze that not sure.

I often make gobs of pesto and freeze what I can and then put frozen in ziplocks and freeze more. the pesto can be in your fridge a few days as you freeze it in spirts.

By the way great deal at the Wedge with something called
Organic Everyday Olive Oil....no great deal on pinenuts ever!!!!!!!!

Night and good luck. You have my wheels spinning. I love cooking in mass quantities. Making a bunch of salsa tomorrow.

[Snow]

thankyou

[kaje62]

typing one finnger and nursing

kate's dish is something fresco

but wanted to say and you may know this but best to put in bag in fridge dirty,,,don't wash till you use ane it lasts longer

last year at this time i went out to my friend brigitte's and we made 9 bartches of pesto and only used 1/2 of what she had

she sold her farm

ok night for real

[kaje62]

double post sorry

[kaje62]

snow would love to hear the results of your basil story

[kaje62]

1 lb pasta of your choice
3 to 4 peeled garlic cloves, or more or less to taste
3 cups tomatoes, chopped
salt and pepper
1/2 cup or more chopped basil
2 tablespoons olive oil
1/4 cup asiago or parmesan reggiano

Boil the pasta. Meanwhile, combine in a blender 2 cups of the tomatoes
with the basil, garlic, and salt and pepper to taste. When the pasta is
ready, drain and toss in the cheese and olive oil, then immediately
stir in the blender sauce. Taste and adjust to suit your liking. When
you're ready to serve, add the chopped tomatoes.

* an alternative that works just as well is to toss all the ingredients
in the blender (inc oil and cheese).

[Snow]

The Midget & I just finished making a blender full of the pesto - mmmm. It's all in ice cube trays right now. We used Kate/Colin's recipe and then added the toasted walnuts and sea salt ala Sara Mama, and cut the garlic in half since we aren't big garlic lovers over here. (& then the bottom of the stupid blender started leaking & we've got it all over the place now) Will add the tomatoes and cheese later to each cube's worth at the time they get used. But already the kitchen smells heavenly. This is the first year we haven't just given away all our basil but I yanked it out by the roots that night it was 25 degrees out so we had a couple garbage bags of it to use. By the time we had pulled all the leaves off and discarded the rest we had it down to only a couple large popcorn bowls worth.
M chose fusilli pasta for tonight, so we'll some of the pesto up w/ one of the ugly (but tasty) Brandywines sitting on the counter & some fresh grated parmesan and see how it goes. thx

(edited for clarity - sheesh!)

[kaje62]

glad it went well snow

never heard of tomatoe pesto, but sounds good

forgot the recipe is from kate but it is colin's

[kaje62]

bumping for Nostrow

[smeta]

:wave
I have a really yummy tomato pesto recipe, it is so easy too - no blender mess!

It's something like this:
1 small can of tomato paste (6 oz.?)
1/3 c. olive oil
2 cloves garlic, pressed
1/4 c. parmesan cheese
1/4 c. pine nuts, toasted (walnuts work ok too)
3 tblsp. fresh basil OR 1 1/2 tsp. dried plus 2 tsp. dried parsley

Mix it all together and let sit for at least a 1/2 hr.

I toss it w/ tortellini and veggies - either green beans or broccoli and zucchini. Sun-dried tomatoes are good in it too.