I think pesto is my new favorite food. You can make so many different kinds of pesto, and they keep in the fridge a long time (and freezer too!). Freeze your pesto in ice cube trays, then pop out and put in a ziplock bag for individual portions. Pesto is great when you are busy and don't have time to make a big weeknight dinner. I posted a recipe in fall of '08 for my mother-in-law's basil pesto. But this year I have been making artichoke pesto!!
You can find a gazillion different artichoke pesto recipes on the web, and now here is number gazillion-and-one.
Artichoke Lemon Pesto
1 can artichoke hearts (8 oz), drained
5 T olive oil
5 T grated pecorino cheese (or you can use parm.)
1/3 c. fresh basil leaves
4 T. fresh lemon juice
1 cup nuts (I use pine nuts, but you can also use walnuts. toast them for a different flavor if you like)
2 cloves garlic
salt to taste
Throw the artichoke hearts, nuts, and cheese in the food processor and pulse a few times. Then add all other ingredients and whiz it up. You can add more oil or water to loosen the pesto if it is too thick. Taste and adjust the seasoning with salt.
Now that you've got your pesto, you can get to work putting together your fast dinner. Spread the pesto on a whole wheat pita, and top with a big fat slice of roasted red pepper (recipe posted earlier this year). Slap it in the toaster oven for 5 minutes, watching to make sure the pita doesn't get too crispy. Serve with a salad or soup.
Pesto can be made from: basil, sun-dried tomatoes, spinach, hearts of palm, olives, roasted red peppers, and even figs!
Try pesto in these other fun ways:
on baked potatoes, over chicken or fish prior to baking, with a baguette and brie, on apple slices, tossed with boiled chilled shrimp for a fancy shrimp salad, swirled into your tomato soup, as salad dressing.
