Steele (the Day)

Functional Foodie Friday (leftovers): Toasted Walnut Pesto

// July 8th, 2011 // Functional Foodie, My Fabulous Life

Yeah, yeah. Haven’t been around these parts for a while. So long, in fact, that I have six updates to load in my admin page! Whoa, bad blogger, bad blogger.

Today we have leftovers from back in September since these fresh ingredients are available now. I’m loving Harperville for a couple of days, and helping with $ome wedding detail$. I’ll be back with some fresh fare next week. Until then, enjoy the leftovers!

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Have you ever bought fresh basil at the grocery store, or even at a Farmer’s Market? If you have, you know how pricey it can be. Last spring I purchased 4 tiny basil plants for 59 cents at our local grocery store’s garden display. They were pathetic plants, but there’s something purposeful about resurrecting the near dead. (I also bought cilantro, which was brown and buried about a week later).

The result of my meager purchase was so much basil, I can’t even give enough away. I put it in salads and pasta sauce, but the more I trim it, the faster it grows. I was seeing pesto in my future. One trip to the grocery store to purchase pine nuts sent me into shock – they were almost $15 a pound! Undaunted, I turned to trusty Google and found recipes for pesto with walnuts, combined a couple of the recipes, and here’s what I came up with. (Yes, all measurements are estimated. You really can’t go wrong). I really loved the extra-nutty flavor the walnuts provided here, and may never go back to pine nuts. Use as many of the tops of the plants as you can; those leaves are more tender and sweet.

Pesto makes a great sandwich spread or tossed with warm pasta. You can use it as a vegetable dip, a marinade for chicken or fish, or throw a dollop on a salad. Spread it on French bread or use on pizza in place of regular pizza sauce. The possibilities are endless! I freeze it in zip lock bags, but you can also use regular containers or ice cube trays. There’s nothing like fresh pesto on a winter vegetable!

Basil is an excellent source of vitamins and minerals, just like any other leafy green. In this picture, I cooked some black pepper fettuccine and tossed it with fresh chopped tomatoes, leftover shredded chicken, and topped with fresh grated asiago cheese.

Toasted Walnut Pesto

2-3 cups packed, fresh basil leaves
2 cloves garlic, rough chop
½ cup chopped walnuts
¾ cup freshly grated Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese
About ¼ cup olive oil
1 teaspoon fresh lemon juice (prevents browning)
Sea salt and pepper

Toast walnuts for 10 min in 350° oven. Let cool, chop. Place walnuts in food processor and pulse until fairly fine. Add garlic and basil, pulse to combine. Slowly stream in olive oil and blend until mixture is the consistency of paste. Add more or less depending on how thick you like it. Add cheese and lemon juice, and continue blending until smooth. Add salt and pepper to taste.

Tea today: whatever bag is in my purse but first I need to change Harper

Related posts:

1. Tasty Bites: Toasted Walnut Pesto
2. Functional Foodie Friday: Sweet Corn and Quinoa Chowder (leftovers)
3. Functional Foodie Friday: Massaged Kale Salad
4. Functional Foodie Friday: White Bean Stew with Chicken Sausage and Spinach
5. Functional Foodie Friday (rerun): Spinach Blueberry Salad with Lemon Poppyseed Dressing