Wednesday, August 5, 2009

Pesto and Lori's Chicken....


I have been away at the beach with one of my best girlfriends for the past few days.
We relaxed and did very little of anything...we talked, and talked, and talked...it was lovely. Now I am home...my kids are back from Europe, my husband is also back and life will slowly but surely get back to normal.

This dinner was one of the first home cooked meals my husband had had in a month of being away in Brussels...he was happy. I made some pesto with a big bunch of basil I had. I used a Lidia Bastianich recipe and added a bit more basil then called for and then a nice handful of baby spinach. It kept the pesto nice and green. I used a processor rather than a blender and the method of combining the ingredients makes for a lovely verdant green paste, rather than a more oily pesto. I used some water from the pasta pot to thin it out and added two tablespoons of cream to the pesto mixture. It was wonderful pesto. Two cups of basil and a nice handful of baby spinach gave me enough pesto for two pounds of pasta and then some...

It comes out and stays very green from the spinach...you can not taste that it is in there at all...I will most definitely do this again...I also loved that this pesto was not too oily...

Classic Pesto
Lidia Bastianich

Yields: 1 cup

INGREDIENTS

* 1 pinch coarse sea salt
* 60 small or 30 large fresh basil leaves, dried
* 2 cloves garlic, peeled
* 3 tablespoons pignoli, lightly toasted
* 2 tablespoons Pecorino Romano, fresh, finely grated
* 2 tablespoons Grana Padano, fresh, finely grated
* 3 to 4 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil

DIRECTIONS

In a mortar:
Start with salt and few leaves of basil. Crush with a pestle, keep adding leaves a few at a time, then add garlic and pound until the mixture becomes a paste. Add pignoli and work into a paste, then add cheese and slowly pour the olive oil. Work all into a creamy consistency.

In a blender:
Add basil, salt and garlic. Work into a paste, add pignoli and slowly pour half of the olive oil. Add cheese and the remaining olive oil. Blend until it becomes a homogeneous, creamy paste.

My notes:
I used about two cups of basil, loosely packed and a nice handful of raw baby spinach. I used about 4 tablespoons of oil all together...if it is too thick then just add a little bit more oil. I used two really big fat garlic cloves. When serving, thin out the pesto with some hot pasta water, if you like you can also add a tablespoon or two of cream, toss with hot drained pasta....




I also served my friend Lori's Chicken Cutlets with Artichokes, Tomato, and Mozzarella from her wonderful blog All That Splatters. It was delicious! I had some freshly made mozzarella from the farmer's market that I used...
everyone loved this...I hope you stop by her blog...lots of wonderful recipes and pictures there.

7 comments:

  1. Your pesto looks amazing, Linda. I will have to try it - I like the idea of supplementing it with spinach. And such a beautiful color.

    I'm so glad you liked the chicken dish! It is really good, isn't it?!

    ReplyDelete
  2. Linda, I love the idea of adding spinach to the pesto ~ the color is a knockout! I am really looking forward to making a batch of this (and Lori's chicken, too.)

    Thanks for finding the recipe for the pesto and sharing it with us.

    xo~m

    ReplyDelete
  3. I prefer my pesto just like that..When I sit in front of a plate of green oil..It doesn't do it for me.Yours looks perfect..Funny yesterday I was looking at artichokes in the can thinking..I know I just saw a great recipe for this w/ something..This was it!! Lori's!!

    Your pics are delish..The beach sounds like fun..Glad your family is back together again~

    ReplyDelete
  4. Last night we had Trenette with Pesto,potatoes ,and green beans with this pesto...it was wonderful and still a beautiful green...
    Lxo

    ReplyDelete
  5. This looks so fresh and pretty. Love the color!

    ReplyDelete
  6. Adding spinach gives the pesto such intense color. I have a crop ready to harvest so am very happy to find your recipe. Pesto smells like summertime to me.

    I envy your trip to the beach. Haven't been there in awhile.

    ReplyDelete
  7. This looks so great, Linda. Have you ever used holy basil? It tastes strong - like a cross between cloves and peppermint - and I have a ton...hope you're well and adjusted to having a college kid. Caleb starts K Monday...

    ReplyDelete